Energies
by AccioVoldemortsNose
Summary: After battling Loki, Gwendolyn Powers thinks it's all over. Little does she know, that was only the start of something far worse.
1. Chapter One

**And I'm back!**

**Alright, so first of all, if you have no idea who Gwen Powers is, you might want to read the story that comes before this named "Powers." Actually, you need to, otherwise you'll be very lost.**

**Second, I would like to point out something. There are new characters being introduced in this installment, but they are not mine. They are characters I've taken from the Marvel comics that I thought would fit in well. The ones you don't recognize if you haven't read the comics or haven't read anything on the internet are obviously not from the movies at all. I hope you enjoy the way I write them as I am enjoying it myself.**

**Third, I own nothing you recognize.**

**And fourth, enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter One**

It was rare for Gwendolyn Powers to find a day to herself. Not that Gwen was complaining about how Director of SHIELD, Nick Fury, was having her sent around the world various times within the two months after fighting in a battle for Earth's safety from an emotionally unstable god. But was nice for Gwen to have a day in which she could simply curl up on the couch in the small, one story home she lived itn and watch movies all day. And to honor this day, she was having a Harry Potter movie marathon.

She knew she wouldn't finish all the films, but she had never gotten the opportunity to sit and watch them one after another. And once the last film came out on DVD and Blu-ray, she was dying to do so.

So on this day, Gwen closed all the blinds and curtains, turned off all the lights, piled up junk food ad soda on the floor of her living room and curled up under a blanket as she pressed the "OK" button on the Blu-ray remote to start the _Sorcerer's Stone_.

It figured that by the time Professor Quirrell ran into the Great Hall on Halloween that her home phone would begin to ring.

Irritated, she turned up the volume on the television and let the phone ring. She wasn't about to get up and answer it.

She heard her voice speak as the call went to voicemail and he couldn't help but listen so she could hear who called.

And she rolled her eyes once the message started.

"Hey buttercup," came the voice of Tony Stark. "I know it's your day off and all, but Pepper and I were talking and we were wondering if you would like to come over for dinner sometime next week. I know you've got your date with the old man here tomorrow night - and by the way, he's really nervous -"

"Shut up, Stark!"

"Calm down, Cap, I'm joking. Anyway, I suppose you don't have to call back. Just tell us tomorrow when we see you. Have a good day off, buttercup."

She heard a beep as Tony ended the message and sighed. It was obvious he only called either because he wanted to try to ruin Gwen's day off or because he wanted to embarrass Steve who was living in Stark - or as it was now called Avengers - Tower.

Tony had become incredibly giddy ever since the murder charges that had been pressed against him were dropped. He had managed to prove his innocence with the help of Gwen and Pepper as Tony was prepared to threaten the court if they didn't claim he was innocent. They all knew that wouldn't go well.

Just as Harry and Ron were finishing battling the troll in the bathroom, her phone rang again. Gwen groaned loudly and flopped onto her side as she let it ring.

"Hey, Gwendolyn, it's Clint," came Clint Barton's voice. "Did Stark just call you and invite you to dinner? Because he just called me and did so and I think it's kinda weird. Anyway, I'll talk to you later."

Gwen rolled her eyes as she heard a beep telling her that Clint hung up.

Gwen groaned loudly as the phone rang again, just as Harry killed the basilisk in the _Chamber of Secrets_. She let it go to voicemail again.

"Hey, Gwendolyn," said the voice of Bruce Banner, "I just wanted to let you know that I have a new batch of medication for you. Seeing as the last one we made last month worked perfectly, I just made some more. I know it's your day off and all, but I just wanted to let you know. You can come by my lab tomorrow and pick it up."

There was another beep as Bruce hung up.

Getting an idea, Gwen waited until the _Chamber of Secrets _was done with and then got up. She took the phone off the charger it sat on and pressed the talk button. Smiling to herself, knowing that no one else could bother her now, she sat back down after putting in the _Prisoner of Azkaban, _feeling relaxed at last.

That was until her cell phone rang.

* * *

Asgard was in chaos.

People feared the worst after the death of their king and, of course, thought war was futile. They had live in peace for so long, with the exception of Loki's rule.

Once Loki had come back from speaking with Thanos, he knew he had to tell someone, even though his pride contradicted him. He did not want to admit to working for the Titan, but, like war, it was futile. And it was the only way to warn the others.

Although Thor, Frigga, Sif and the Warriors Three were not happy with what Loki had been doing during his exile, they did not judge nor question him. All they knew was that he was coming clean and warning them of what Thanos was going to do.

"But the Infinity Gauntlet is locked up with the other relics, correct?" asked Sif when Loki finished explaining.

"It was," answered Fandral. "I heard the healers saying that it was stolen during the fight."

Tension covered them like a blanket, the Warriors Three shooting Loki glares.

"But Odin had the gems scattered across Midgard," said Frigga. "Thanos cannot do harm without them."

"The Gauntlet is still powerful," said Loki. "It had magic upon it."

"Then we must stop him," said Volstagg.

"We'll have to travel to Midgard," suggested Thor. "We must find the gems before Thanos and we must warn the humans."

"But what about the throne?" asked Sif.

"Mother, it will be up to you."

Loki looked up at this. He couldn't help but think that Thor was actually going to include him.

"I can handle it," answered Frigga immediately.

"And what about us?" asked Hogun, motioning towards the rest of them.

"Stay here until you are called for," said Thor. "Take care of Asgard while we are gone."

"Are going to try to stop Thanos without us?" asked Fandral.

"I do not wish for anyone to be harmed. If it becomes too dangerous for us to handle, we will call for you."

"And the tesseract?" asked Sif.

"It will open a portal for me and Loki to go through. After that, it will stay here."

"When are you leaving?" asked Frigga.

"We will stay to help repair Asgard and to prepare for Midgard."

They all nodded and then sensed the conversation was over. All but Loki and Thor left.

"I hope that you will cooperate this time, brother," said Thor, turning to Loki.

Loki nodded and did not make eye contact.

"You will follow what I say and you will not try to take over Midgard."

Loki nodded again.

"Good," finished Thor, now smiling. "Come brother, let us aid Asgard."

Loki did his best not to cough when Thor thumped him on the back and followed the god of thunder out and into the realm he was once exiled from.


	2. Chapter Two

**Hello everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying their day. It's really hot outside so my mom and I are going to see _Prometheus_. Anyway...**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Haha, I'm glad you're excited!**

**miller330: I'm excited too!**

**Maroon5Maniac: I'm really happy too haha!**

**firemage23: It certainly will be fun!**

**RachelDare: Phones can be such a terrible privilage ;)**

**Itsgoose2u: I know, it's like sequel palooza!**

**Torilovesu: Yay! I'm glad to hear you love it.**

**AngelVamp6688: Haha same here with Loki. SO MANY FEELS.**

**xdemonbunnyx: Aww, thanks so much! It's so geat to read reviews like yours. I'm always worried about the whole OC thing sometimes. **

**garnet86: I'm glad to hear that. Loki's sometimes hard to write for!**

* * *

**Chapter Two**

The following evening, Gwen dressed herself in a nice looking blouse and black jeans. She threw on a jacket before grabbing her bag and then grabbing a piece of paper she had written something on and stuffing it in her pocket. She then went outside to climb into her new blue Volkswagen Beetle and started up the car. She backed out of the driveway an began the short journey to Avengers Tower.

Gwen had been to the tower earlier that day, but was stuck in the labs as Bruce recorded her reaction to the medication. It had bothered her as she normally spent the day with Steve, but she knew she'd see him that night anyway.

It was strange having a date with Steve in the tower. Normally he came to her small home or they went out to a restaurant. She preferred the latter so that Steve could start getting used to the modern world.

She eventually pulled into the parking garage and parked the car in her designated spot. She had told Tony she didn't need one, that she could park anywhere and be fine, but Tony insisted to no end. Gwen found it much easier to just give in to his request.

After she turned the car off, she got out of the car and entered the elevator.

"Good evening, Agent Powers," said JARVIS.

"Ditto, JARVIS."

"Mr. Stark, Miss Potts and Mr. Rogers are all waiting for you in the penthouse."

"Bring me up, then."

"Yes, Agent Powers."

Gwen felt the elevator begin its rise to the top of the tower. Once it got to the top, the doors slid open, revealing the once again fixed up penthouse after the damage that had been done by Loki. _Again. _Well, actually, Gwen had done some damage too.

She stepped out and into the open space. After looking around, Gwen saw Pepper, her orange hair in a ponytail, sitting next to Steve, his blonde hair styled the same as always and wearing his khakis and button down top, and talking to him.

"Hey, buttercup."

Gwen turned to her right to see Tony, dressed in a blue suit.

"Hi, Tony," she answered as he wrapped her up in a quick hug.

"Rogers! Your girlfriend is here."

Gwen could feel heat rising in her face, despite the fact she knew it was true. She turned back and saw Steve getting up quickly, looking right at her. His blue eyes were shining bright and his lips were stretched in a large smile.

Gwen approached him as he approached her and the two embraced, Gwen's arms around his neck and his around her waist. Gwen leaned back and planted a short and gentle kiss on his lips.

"Okay," said Tony. "Since I'm really not interested in seeing this, I think Pepper and I will be off."

Pepper rolled her eyes as she got up and grabbed her purse.

"We'll be back before ten," she stated as she followed Tony to the elevator.

"And remember Rogers, your place and no funny business," added Tony, his hands in his pockets.

Gwen looked back at Steve to see him blushing. She couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks, Stark," said Steve, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Tony and Pepper both stepped into the elevator. Pepper tugged on Tony's arm as he kept his eyes glued on Steve until the doors closed.

Gwen, still smiling, took hold of Steve's hand. He was pulled out of his thoughts by the action and looked down at her, his face bright again.

"Stark insists that we have dinner in my apartment here," he stated as they slowly walked over the the elevator.

"That's right, I haven't seen it yet," added Gwen.

"It's not much."

The doors slid open as the elevator arrived back up in the penthouse.

"Would you like to go to your floor, Mr. Rogers?" asked JARVIS.

"Yes, please," answered Steve a bit uncertainly as though he still wasn't too sure about talking to an artificial intelligence.

Gwen moved her hands up so that her arms wrapped around Steve's right arm as the elevator took them to the fortieth floor. The doors slid open, leading to a short hall that had several doors. Steve brought Gwen down the hall and stopped at the second door on the right. He typed in a password on the panel that acted as a lock and the door unlocked. Gwen let go as he reached forward and turned the doorknob and opened the door.

Gwen followed Steve over the threshold and looked around. To the right was a dining room with a chandelier. The table stood on a tan carpet and was surrounded by four chairs. The rest of the floor was hardwood and to the left was a kitchen. The counters were granite and all of the appliances were stainless steel and a bit futuristic looking.

The main chunk of the room in front of them was a living area. There was a brown couch that had some buttons on the side and a coffee table that sat in front of it. A television sat upon a glass stand for it with a few other devices on shelves below it. Even farther forward sat a balcony, but was closed off by glass sliding doors.

"Wow," thought Gwen out loud. "This is really nice."

"Pepper helped me with dinner," Steve admitted as he took off Gwen's jacket for her. He threw it on a counter.

"I'm sure it's great."

Gwen took off her bag and placed it on her coat. She saw Steve bringing a few plates over to the table in the dining area.

"D'you need any help?" she asked.

Steve placed the plates on the table. "No, you sit down."

He pulled out a chair and Gwen, smiling again, walked over and sat down. He went to the other side of the table and sat down in his own chair. Gwen looked down and saw that her plate was filled with steak and mashed potatoes. She couldn't help but think Pepper did most of the work, but silently gave Steve credit for trying.

"So, has Tony been bugging you about this?" teased Gwen as she picked up a fork.

Just as expected, Steve's face flushed. "That man is very protective of you."

"Don't worry, it's just Tony."

"I've been trying to convince him I won't do anything stupid, but he completely ignores me."

"I know you won't do anything stupid," said Gwen softly. She looked up at Steve who was cutting his steak and smiling.

"Thanks."

"So who else lives here, again?"

"Doctor Banner lives across the hall," answered Steve. "He's normally in his lab though. JARVIS has to remind him to leave. I heard him get back a three this morning."

"And why were you up?"

"I couldn't sleep."

Gwen wondered for a moment of Steve was still having nightmares like he had told her two months prior. But she did not push it.

"Agent Barton is next door and Agent Romanoff is across from him," continued Steve. "I've never actually seen them there, though."

"It seems really nice," commented Gwen.

"Yeah, I suppose."

Gwen couldn't help but think it must be hard for Steve to become accostumed to a new living style. But she was glad she was there to help him, like when she showed him how to use the telephone in the penthouse.

After thinking about it, Gwen slipped the piece of paper out of her pocket and set it on the table so it was right-side up for Steve and upside down for her.

"What's this?" he asked after swallowing.

"It's an address," she answered.

"I see that. But who's it for?"

"You might know her as Peggy Carter."

Steve's eyes went wide as he looked up at Gwen. She was smiling at him.

"W - what?" he stuttered.

"You never talk about the people you knew before you were frozen and I thought you might want to know if they were alive or not. From the footage that was taken, I eventually saw a picture of her and I looked her up. I'm sorry if it bothered you I did this."

Steve looked at the piece of paper again and then back at Gwen.

"So she's alive?"

"Yep," answered Gwen. "She lives in Virginia. She's been trying to stay off of SHIELD's radar, so the address was all I could get."

"And you're not mad?"

Gwen furrowed her brow. "Why would I be mad?"

"I mean, well, it's just that-"

"_Oh_," said Gwen, finally understanding what he meant. "You think I might be jealous."

Steve blushed as she stated this.

"Steve, I can't tell you how hard it was to find this. If I was mad, I wouldn't do this."

After a moment of silence, Steve nodded and smiled back at Gwen. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The rest of their dinner was filled with regular conversation, Gwen updating Steve on things and explaining what several headlines in the newspaper meant. Once their plates were empty, Steve put them in the sink and told Gwen he'd clean them and that she didn't have to, despite her protesting.

Once Gwen realized how late it was getting, she stood up to announce that she should be leaving.

"Oh, and tell Tony I can come to dinner next week," she told Steve, having forgotten to tell Tony when they were up in the penthouse.

"I will," answered Steve.

He helped her into her jacket and handed Gwen her bag.

"So I'll see you tomorrow?" she asked as she made her way for his door.

"Hopefully," answered Steve.

They stopped at the closed door and Gwen placed her hands upon his chest. She leaned forward on the tips of her toes and kissed Steve gently.

He kissed her back, all gentlness gone between them. The two pulled away after a few seconds and smiled widely at each other.

"Bye," she said as he opened the door for her.

"Bye."

Gwen waved to Steve as she started for the elevator. He didn't close his door until the eleveator doors had slid shut.

Still smiling, Gwen walked back to her car in a daze and drove home. Her headlights illuminated the street in front of her. Just as she began to pull into her driveway, she noticed two figures standing in her yard. One was larger than the other and was waving something in the air. Gwen made her window go down so she could hear what they were saying.

"Lady Gwendolyn!" shouted the bigger one. "Are you in there?"

"Thor, are you sure this is the right house?" asked the skinnier one.

"I know it is. Heimdall described it for me."

"Thor?" asked Gwen as she stepped out of the car. "Is that you?"

Thor Odinson turned and Gwen recognized the man beside him. She stiffened as she realized it was Loki. What was he doing on Earth? And most importantly, what was he doing in her yard?

"Lady Gwendolyn," said Thor as he strode over, hammer in his hand, and grabbed her hand and kissed the knuckles lightly. "It is very good to see you again."

"Yeah, it's nice to see you too," she answered, still looking at Loki who seemed very uncomfortable with the situation. "Would you like to come inside?"

"If it is no trouble to you."

"Oh, no trouble at all." She walked to the front door and unlocked it before opening it. Thor followed her and Loki stayed where she found him.

"You can come in too, Loki," she added over her shoulder as she stepped inside the warm home.

"You heard the lady," called Thor. "Come inside!"

Gwen led Thor and Loki into her living room, the same room she had spent the entire previous day in.

"You guys can sit down," she said, still shocked that she had two gods in her home. She motioned at the couch. Thor took a seat immediately, looking around. Loki awkwardly looked at the ground, refusing to make eye contact with Gwen.

"Brother," said Thor, "sit down with me."

When Loki shook his head, Thor yanked on the pale man and pulled him down on the couch.

"Is there anything I can get you?" asked Gwen as she entered the kitchen and set her bag on the counter.

Gwen felt slightly silly for asking them that, but she knew it was proper manners. Even if one of her guests had tried to kill her and take over the world twice.

"No," answered Thor. "We are well for now."

"So," she said as she came back into the living room and sat in the large rocking chair by the couch, "why are you here, exactly?"

"There is trouble," said Thor. "Our father is dead."

Gwen's eyes became as wide as saucers as she comprehended this.

"Asgard fell under attack and when I arrived back with Loki we found our father dying," continued Thor. "He had been stabbed. Loki believes he knows who is responsible."

"Oh, um, okay," said Gwen, unsure of why they decided to visit her of all people. "I guess I could try to contact Fury."

In truth, Gwen had no idea how to contact him. They weren't always on good terms, so if he even had a phone, she didn't know. Instead, Gwen got up and left Thor and Loki in her living room so that she could get to the phone. She then dialed Avengers Tower in hopes that Tony and Pepper had gotten home.

The phone rang a few times before someone picked up.

"Hello?" came Pepper's voice.

"Hey, Pepper, it's Gwen," responded Gwen. "Um, when I got back home I found Thor and Loki in my yard."

_"What?"_

"That's sort of what I thought. Anyway, they say their father is dead and that Asgard was under attack. Do you know how I can contact Fury?"

"I suppose I could have Tony fly to the helicarrier, but he's a bit intoxicated right now..."

"Okay, well-"

"Son of Coul!" came Thor's booming voice. "I thought you to be dead!"

Gwen turned to see that Thor had gotten out of his seat and was now at the front door, having opened it.

And on the other side of the entrance was Phil Coulson.


	3. Chapter Three

**Happy Saturday everyone! _Prometheus _was...okay. I just expected a lot more aliens and I still don't understand some things. The special effects were great though.**

**Jimmy 144: Sorry I didn't respond in the last chapter...I didn't get the notification of your review until after I posted! So thank you.**

**MysticRyter: Wee! I inspired you! That's pretty cool. **

**Jen Lennon: Thank you very much!**

**Liliesshadow: At least they're "crazy awesome" ones!**

**Supernaturalxfan172: Thank you! :D**

**PeterFlan: Thank you so much! **

**Itsgoose2u: Haha I'm glad you enjoyed that. Phil is like the best thing ever. I couldn't help myself ha.**

**DawnOfTheNight: Phil's too awesome to die. I'm pretty sure Clark Gregg said he's in Iron Man 3, but I'm not sure.**

**miller330: Thank you :)**

**firemage23: Haha I've made the readers paranoid!**

**Rory: Thank you so much! It's great to read a review like yours!**

**dragonrain618: Thank you :D**

**AngelVamp6688: PARANOIA IS IN THE AIR!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Why, thank you! I'm glad you're liking it. And I laughed too as I imagined drunk Tony flying around :)**

**xdemonbunnyx: Phil's awesomeness it too much for death haha. I don't even know how I update everyday. It just sort of happens and I'm like okay.**

* * *

**Chapter Three**

"Uh," said Gwen, her eyes wide at the man she was seeing, "SHIELD's already here."

"Alright," answered Pepper. "I'll make sure Tony doesn't fall asleep in case he's called in."

With that Gwen hung up the phone and turned back to the front door.

"Agent Powers," greeted Phil, looking around Thor. "It's nice to see you."

"But you're dead," said Gwen, approaching the two men.

"Apparently not," answered Phil.

"No. I went to your funeral. You're dead."

"But how is Son of Coul dead if he is standing right here?" asked Thor, motioning to Phil as if Gwen couldn't see him.

"I don't know," said Gwen. "But - I need some sleep or something."

Phil turned back to Thor while Gwen ran her hands over her face. "We had seen an atmospheric disturbance in this area. I was ordered to come and take you all to the helicarrier."

Phil walked inside at this point and approached Loki who was still awkwardly looking at the floor.

"Loki, you will be handcuffed when we transport you all," said Phil.

The god didn't respond and Gwen stood by unsure if Loki felt guilty for killing Phil or if he felt no guilt and that's why he seemed so awkward. Gwen watched as a few other agents came into her home and put handcuffs on Loki and also a steel bracelet on each wrist. She wasn't sure what they were for, but she remained quiet as they were all led into a black SUV with tinted windows. They were hard to see with the night sky blanketing everything in its darkness. The car drove until they reached the same place where Gwen had arrived via jet only month before.

They exited and boarded a a SHILED quinjet, much like the aircrafts that they had been constantly using before when Loki was trying to take over the world again.

Gwen sat down in one of the seats across from Thor and Loki. Phil remained standing as the aircraft lifted off.

"Is Steve going to be there?" asked Gwen, looking at Phil.

"He as well as Stark, Banner and Miss Potts will be on the helicarrier when we arrive."

"Even Pepper?" asks Gwen. She furrowed her brow. "But why?"

"We've been monitoring several atmospheric disturbances for the past few weeks. We're relocating our base of operations and taking Miss Potts with us."

"And where might that be?"

"It's classified."

"Phil, I'm an agent of SHIELD as well."

"Not my level."

"Phil, I took your job!"

"Because I got promoted."

Gwen opened her mouth several times to speak, but she always ended up closing her lips every time she thought of something to say.

The quinjet finally landed and the agents inside the helicarrier took hold of Loki and began leading him off. Thor protested this, so they all came to a compromise that the god of thunder would go with them.

This left Gwen alone with Phil.

"Would care to explain how you're alive?" she asked as he began walking through the halls. Gwen quickly took long strides to keep up with him.

"Also classified."

"Sometimes I really hate SHIELD."

Gwen could've sworn she saw the corners of Phil's lips twitch, but she wasn't sure.

They eventually found themselves in the conference room. It was not empty as Clint and Natasha were already seated, Natasha looking rather on edge from recently coming back from what Gwen guessed was a super secret spy mission.

Bruce was looking over files next to Tony who had his head on the table and was most likely sleeping. Pepper was sitting on his other side and had her hand on his back.

Last was Steve who was standing and perked up when he saw Gwen enter. But it was short lived when he saw Phil.

"Agent Coulson?" he asked.

Everyone looked up at the point. Natasha and Clint didn't look very surprised at this, but Pepper gasped and Bruce's jaw was unhinged. Tony gave a snore and Pepper hit his back to wake him up.

"I didn't do it," he said picking up his head. His eyes landed on Phil right away. "I must be really drunk."

Phil ignored him as he stood at the front of the table, but back a bit from where Fury normally stood.

Gwen took a seat across from the others and Steve sat down next to her.

"D'you know what happened?" he asked her.

"No," she answered. "I got home and found Thor and Loki in my yard and the Coulson came before they could really tell me anything."

"Wait, did you say Loki?"

"Yeah."

"Are you okay?"

Gwen sighed. "Yes, Steve. I'm fine. I honestly don't think Loki's gonna kill me."

"I wouldn't be too sure."

"Something seems different about him. I can't explain it."

Gwen couldn't say more as Fury had just entered the room followed by Thor and a still handcuffed Loki who was being held by several agents. However, he looked slightly uncomfortable being in the room as he had tried to kill every one of them.

Fury strode to the front of the table like always and put his hands on the table.

"Can someone please explain to me what the_ hell_ is going on?" he asked, his one eye wide.

"There is a threat-" began Thor.

"What threat?" interrupted Fury.

"A threat larger than any you have had before," spoke Loki for the first time.

Everyone turned to him and then to each other. Fury stared at Loki as he seemed to be thinking.

"Thor, Loki, I wish to speak to you in private," said Fury at last.

He led the two gods out of the room, insisting there was no more need for the agents holding Loki.

Gwen's heart was racing. She knew this couldnt' be good, especially if Loki was the one saying there was a threat. She was dying to know what they were saying out in the hall.

"Hey, Gwenie," said Tony.

Gwen turned her head to look at him.

"What's Rudolph doing here?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I don't know, Tony."

"It can't be good," added Bruce. "Why is _he_ warning us?"

"Exactly what I was thinking," agreed Gwen.

"I don't like it," said Steve.

"None of us do," agreed Clint.

They were silent as they waited for Fury to finish speaking with the gods. Gwen saw Steve sneak a few guilty looks at Phil. She began wondering what the soldier was thinking.

Suddenly, the door opened again and Fury walked in. He looked much different. Not scared, but he looked actually worried. This frightened Gwen to no end.

"This is worse than I thought it was going to be," she could hear Fury mutter to Phil.

"How's he alive?" asked Tony suddenly, pointing at Phil.

"Agent Coulson has been on a classified mission for the past several months," answered Fury. "Nothing more will be said on the subject."

"What is worse than you thought it was?" asked Gwen.

Everyone turned expectantly to Fury who ran a hand over his head.

"Right now, I'm not going to tell you. You're going to follow my orders."

"Not until you tell us," argued Tony.

"Then you can say goodbye to ever knowing."

Tony contemplated this for a second and then sat back in his chair. He remained quiet.

"Thank you," said Fury. "Alright, I have an order for you all."

"What is it?" asked Natasha.

"I need you all to tell me people you think could be useful to us," ordered Fury.

"Maybe if you told us what's going on," said Tony.

Fury rolled his eyes. "_Not yet_."

"Jane Foster," said Thor immediately, his eyes lighting up. "And Darcy Lewis of course."

"Don't forget Selvig," added Clint.

"I have a friend that could help," said Tony, surprising everyone by his cooperation.

"Alright," said Fury. "Barton, Romanoff, Powers, Coulson and Stark. I need you to stay here. The rest of you are dismissed."

Bruce got up first and led Pepper out of the room. Thor took Loki out and Steve reluctantly got up and left, giving Gwen a smile before leaving.

"Barton," said Fury, "you're going to pick up Doctor Selvig from Washington D. C."

"Will do," answered Clint.

"Romanoff, you're going to get Jane Foster and Darcy Lewis in New Mexico."

Natasha nodded.

"Stark, you're going to pick up this friend of yours wherever he is."

Tony gave a salute.

"Powers, you're going to San Francisco to recruit two people. I'll give you their files so you can read about them on the way there."

Excited to finally get the chance to recruit people, Gwen sat up straighter and nodded.

"Coulson, I think it's time we bring Stephen in, don't you think?"

Phil nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Good. I'll get the others. You'll all be leaving tomorrow morning. Get some rest. You're dismissed."


	4. Chapter Four

**Okay, so I'm going to try to post the next like five or six chapters as fast as possible seeing as I really want to get through this whole recruiting thing so I can start posting the next main chunk of the story.**

**Arrows the Wolf: I know it's exciting!**

**dragonrain618: You'll find out soon enough :D**

**Itsgoose2u: I'm glad to hear that!**

**miller330: I'm so good at teasers haha.**

**AngelVamp6688: Haha Gwen always seems to run into strange things. If I were her I'd freak out.**

**LiebenMadchen: Aww, thank you! I love your feedback on Gwen. I'm so worried about her becoming a Mary-Sue. **

**MysticRyter: Oh that's right, I saw that on tumblr. I was actually tempted to do that in my fic, but then I came up with a different idea.**

**KiyUzumaki: I'll try my best :D I had to do a lot of research to get them right, so don't worry. **

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I can tell you that it isn't Spider-Man, though I tried really hard to figure out how to get him in here. I really want him to, but if he does, it won't be in this installment (hint hint). **

**Rory: Tom Hiddleston is practically a god haha. I'm so in love with him. What's awkward though is that my mom is too...**

**xdemonbunnyx: I'm glad you mentioned how you are seeing Coulson. I read through the chapter again and I agree with you. I'll have to make him a bit happier. Thank you for saying that!**

* * *

**Chapter Four**

Seeing as it was pretty late, Gwen went straight to her living quarters on board the helicarrier. Had it been earlier in the day, she would've gone to find Steve, but seeing as she was still trying to figure out what in the world was going on, she decided that sleep might be a good option.

It was nice, though, that Gwen wasn't the only agent in the dark. Especially for Clint and Natasha to be refused information. Obviously Phil and Fury had been working closely for all those months people thought Phil was dead. That was something that bothered Gwen. She really wanted to know what was so important that they even had to stage his funeral.

Once Gwen was in her living quarters, she laid down on the familiar bed and closed her eyes, hoping that sleep would easily come.

* * *

The next day, Gwen was ushered into the command center where Clint and Natasha were standing. She saw Tony off to the side more, looking like he could use some more sleep. Gwen stifled a laugh at the man's obvious hangover.

"Agents," said Fury, getting their attention. "And Stark. You will be heading out today via quinjets. You will return today with the people asked for. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir," rang the voices of Gwen, Clint and Natasha automatically. Tony simply didn't respond.

"Good. Head to the hanger. You'll be escorted to your quinjet."

They all nodded and Clint and Natasha quickly began walking for the hanger. Gwen pulled on Tony's arm to get him going.

"I can't believe you're actually doing this," said Gwen as they walked.

"I can't believe it either," answered Tony. "I don't even remember agreeing to this."

"Do you remember that Phil is alive?"

Tony rubbed his eyes. "I thought I dreamt that."

"Nope. He's here and breathing."

"That's pretty messed up, if you ask me."

"So who's this friend of yours?"

"It's a guy back in California. He's helped out in a bad situation before."

"So you're not just bringing him in because he's your friend."

"Maybe."

Gwen rolled her eyes and sighed as they entered the hanger where four quinjets were sitting. She saw Phil board one and take off.

"Gwen!"

She turned around to see Steve hurrying over to her. He threw his arms around her and she returned the gesture. They pulled away from each other after a few seconds.

"I just wanted to say good luck," said Steve.

Gwen smiled up at him. "Well, thank you, Captain."

He smiled back. "No problem."

"I won't be gone long," she stated as she realized how tight his arms were around her. She wondered if he just didn't know his own strength when it came to embracing another person.

"I know, but this all seems pretty serious."

"It's fustrating too, seeing as Fury won't tell us anything."

Steve nodded and kissed her forehead gently. "Just be careful."

"I always am."

She leaned up and placed a kiss on his lips before letting go of him. He let go of her as well as she walked to the quinjets. An agent quickly led her into the one designated for her. Before climbing on board, she turned to see Steve, his hands in his pockets, still there. She waved to him and he waved back, just as the door began to close.

* * *

In the small town of Puente Antiguo, New Mexico, Darcy Lewis sat in a chair that was leaning back on its back two legs. She had earphones plugged in her ears, playing the newest One Direction song. Darcy tapped her fingers on her legs to the tempo of the tune.

"Darcy!"

The woman was jolted out of her peace by another woman with light brown hair.

"What?" asked Darcy irritably.

"Look at this," ordered Jane Foster.

She pointed to the television set which sat in the same room as them. It was showing a news channel reporting on footage taken in New York. The video showed what seemed to be some sort of funnel cloud in the night sky.

"Why are you so interested in this?" asked Darcy.

"I think it's him," answered Jane, her eyes wide.

Darcy rolled her eyes. "You think it's him every time you see a cloud."

"Then why is that funnel cloud over New York?"

"I wouldn't know."

Darcy turned her music back on and leaned back in her chair again. But Jane kept her eyes on the screen.

"Jane Foster?"

Jane turned around quickly to see a woman standing there, wearing a black jacket and pants along with a red shirt that matched the color of her hair.

"That's me," answered Jane. "Who are you?"

"Natasha Romanoff," answered the woman.

"And how can I help you?"

"I've been sent here to bring both you and Darcy Lewis into SHIELD."

Jane could remember her last dealing with SHIELD which certainly did not leave a good impression with her.

"And why should I do that?"

"We believe you could be of good help to us," answered Natasha. "And Thor has requested your presence."

Jane's heart leapt. "Thor?"

"Yes. He agrees that you would be of use."

"But...where would you be taking us?"

"I don't know yet. But trust me, it's probably not in New Mexico."

"What about my stuff?"

"It will be transported to our base. Anything that can't be transported will be placed in a safe storage facility that will be heavily guarded and monitored."

Jane was slightly impressed by the measures SHEILD was taking. It seemed they actually cared about her equipment now.

"But why us? What's going on?"

"Unfortunately Director Fury is unwilling to tell us. I am only following orders."

Unknown to Natasha, Jane was already sold at the mention of Thor.

"Alright," she said.

"Good," answered Natasha. "You have one hour to pack up your necessities. Miss Lewis as well."

"Darcy," said Jane. "Darcy!"

"What?" asked Darcy once Jane pulled the earplugs out.

"Were you not listening this entire time?"

"Listening to what?"

Jane looked up at Natasha again. Darcy followed her gaze.

"Who is she?" asked Darcy.

Jane rolled her eyes as she explained to Darcy the situation. The political science major accepted to go, mainly because Jane was going and she would have nothing to do if she stayed in Puente Antiguo.

So within an hour, Jane and Darcy were packed up with their belongings and were climbing into a black SUV along with Natasha. There was surprisingly enough room. Darcy continued to play on her phone, the _Angry Birds_ theme music coming out of it. Jane rolled her eyes at her friend a the car began to move.

"So, Thor asked that I be there?" she asked the redhead.

"He said you and Miss Lewis could be of use."

Jane smiled to herself, feeling all giddy like she had when Thor had kissed her hand that first time he came to Earth. She realized that she had been right about the weird cloud over New York. Thor really was back. And she was going to see him again.


	5. Chapter Five

**Here's another chapter for you all.**

**Arrows the Wolf: Haha, I totally forgot about the taser! I'll have to keep that in mind.**

**firemage23: I'm so excited for it too! I hope they make Loki feel better.**

**miller330: And I'm psyched to post it!**

**xdemonbunnyx: Haha I can now cross "make someone obsessed with something" off my bucket list.**

**AngelVamp6688: I love that part too! I love Darcy for some reason. She's kind of like Tony in a way.**

**Itsgoose2u: Haha yes he does.**

**snowyclara: I must say, your review made me smile like an idiot and made me feel all fuzzy inside haha. Thank you SO much. That meant a lot. Especially how you like Gwen and that everyone is in character. Those were the two things I was most worried about. I'm also always worried about plot twists because they seem so obvious to me because I make them, but I guess they must be good :D**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I will say...yes. It is Rhodey. BUT you inspired me to try to find a way to fit Spider-Man into Gwen's story (which will have more installments after this) and also inspired some other things and then more plots exploded in my head so I must thank you for this :D**

* * *

**Chapter Five**

There were no words to describe how nervous Gwen was as she boarded the quinjet that would be taking her from New York to San Francisco. She had never actually recruited someone before. And now she was heading across the country in hopes of coming back with two people.

Gwen had been given a tablet by a man coming with her named Agent Lyndon. The tablet held all the information she needed to read so that she'd know who she was taking to.

The first person she'd be talking to was a young woman named Daisy Johnson. Daisy was above average height and had very short black hair and vibrant blue eyes. She was apparently on SHIELD's radar because of a special ability she had. Gwen watched in amazement at security footage from a gas station where Daisy was having trouble getting the nozzle out of her car and seemed to accidentally cause an earthquake. Daisy looked around to make sure that no one saw and finally got the nozzle out and drove away. According the the data, SHIELD had approached her several times to join, but she politely declined every time.

The second person was also a woman who was named Doctor Barbara Morse. It seemed she ha actually been an agent of SHIELD and an excellent assassin. But after a mission went wrong and Barbara was taken by an agency named AIM, though Gwen had no idea who they were or what they stood for, she was eventually rescued by SHIELD and then left the agency to be on the run and off their radar. Barbara was obviously failing miserably at this as according to SHIELD's data, she was working as a biologist in San Francisco under the name Cindy Clark.

After absorbing as much information as she could, Gwen prepared herself as the aircraft made its descent. The door opened and she was led into a black SUV, quite like the one that picked her, Thor and Loki up at her house.

The SUV drove for about ten minutes before pulling into the parking lot to an apartment building. Agent Lyndon handed Gwen a notecard which had some information on it.

"Daisy Johnson lives in apartment 401," he stated. "It's on the fourth floor."

He then handed her a key.

"This will get you into the building."

"Thanks," answered Gwen as she stepped out of the car.

Gwen approached the tall building and opened the front glass door. There was a room in between the front and another set of doors. Gwen slid the key she was given into the lock that was on the second set of doors and pushed it open once it was unlocked.

Following the instructions on the notecard, Gwen made her way to the elevator and pushed the up button. Once the elevator arrived and opened, she pressed the button which read the number four. The elevator dinged as it arrived on the fourth floor and the doors slid open. Gwen stepped forward onto the carpeted hallway floor and followed the rest of the instructions.

At last, Gwen found herself looking at the door to 401, she knocked on the door. She heard footsteps on the other side and then the sound of a chain being undone. Then the door opened, revealing Daisy Johnson wearing a green cardigan and dark blue jeans.

"Um," said Daisy uncertainly, "can I help you?"

"Yes, you can," answered Gwen, hoping she could make herself sound informed and professional. "My name is Agent Gwendolyn Powers. I'm here for SHIELD."

Daisy frowned. "I'm really sorry, but I'm not interested in joining SHIELD."

"You really don't have a choice this time."

"I would just prefer not to, y'know, put my life at risk."

Gwen nodded, wishing Fury had told them what this threat to the world was. Therefore, Gwen tried to choose her words carefully.

"It is imperative that you come in," said Gwen, internally flinching at how she sounded.

"Why?"

That was what Gwen hoped Daisy wouldn't ask.

"Director Fury refuses to tell us at this time. Not until everyone has come in."

"Is it like what happened in New York?"

"As far as we know, it's far worse than that."

Daisy seemed to be thinking for a moment before she responded. "So it's that bad?"

Gwen nodded. "We could really use your help."

After a few more moments of hesitation, Daisy nodded and Gwen began cheering on the inside. She couldn't believe that it had been so easy. Far too easy.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Miss Johnson," said Gwen with a smile. "You have an hour to pack up your things."

It only took Daisy about fifteen minutes to gather her possessions into a large suitcase.

"If you would follow me, please."

Gwen led Daisy down the elevator and out of the apartment building. Gwen saw that there was now another black SUV there alongside the one she arrived in. An agent was standing next to it.

"Miss Johnson, you'll be riding with us," said the agent, his dark brown hair blowing in the wind.

Daisy nodded and glanced back at Gwen. She have a small smile and a nod which Gwen returned.

"Agent Powers," came Agent Lyndon's voice from inside the other SUV.

"Coming," answered Gwen. She climbed into the backseat, excited to get to the next recruit. Maybe this wasn't such a hard thing after all.

* * *

Underneath the streets of Washington D. C. sat a secret laboratory. Even the president was unaware of its presence. Nevertheless, Erik Selvig was monitoring what seemed to be some high signals of gamma radiation coming from nearby. It wasn't where it could actually cause harm, but seeing as no one truly knew of what happened to tesseract, people like Erik were still watching things closely.

"How's it looking?" Erik asked a young woman with long blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail who was working on some monitors.

"There hasn't been a spike in two days," she answered. "We believe that whatever is causing the emissions has stopped."

Erik sighed. "Let's just hope it doesn't start again."

"Doctor Selvig?" called a man from behind.

Erik turned around to see none other than Clint Barton being escorted in by a security guard.

"What d'you know?" answered Erik with a smirk on his lips. "The Hawk left his nest."

Clint approached him and put his arm out. Erik shook his hand.

"Doctor, we have a problem," said Clint.

Erik laughed. "That's what I was told when they asked me to come here."

"This is different."

Erik moved to look at a monitor and Clint followed.

"Don't tell me another psychotic god is trying to take over the world."

"I don't know about a god," said Clint, "but something wants to take over the world."

Erik turned to look at Clint. "And I assume Fury ordered you to come and get me?"

Clint nodded.

"Can't really say no to him, can I?"

"Unfortunately not," laughed Clint.

"I suppose I could come back. Just as long as someone doesn't end up possessing me."

"Trust me, I don't want that happening either."

Erik thought for a moment. It didn't seem like such a bad thing to go along. He wasn't really enjoying the city like he thought he would anyway.

"Alright," he answered at last. "When do we leave?"

"We'll take you to wherever you're staying," answered Clint. "You'll have an hour to pack your things."

"An hour? This must be pretty serious."

"If it wasn't I'm sure we wouldn't be asking for you to come in."

Erik nodded. "Let's go then."

* * *

**Virtual cookies to everyone who can tell me what Daisy's superhero alias is!**


	6. Chapter Six

**To everyone who said Daisy's name is Quake, you will get virtual cookies!**

**And I apologize if you don't like Barbara's personality. For the characters that haven't been in movies, I've sort of used my own imagination.**

**Also, we'll get back to our regularly scheduled Gwen/Steve fluff soon. Just bear with me.**

**dragonrain618: Virtual cookies for you! And yes, I will do the whole Mockingbird/Hawkeye thing. It will be a small side-plot though and won't be focused on too much. I just needed Mockingbird for the next installment :)**

**miller330: Thank you! :D**

**Jayc Black: Haha she does. I do believe she helps defeat Magneto actually...but I can't remember. **

**Flautasareamazing: DING DING DING Virtual cookies for you!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Virtual cookies for you! I'm actually really really really happy about the whole Spidey thing. It inspired me to do something else I wasn't going to do, but now I am and it solved a dilema I was having and now it's all PERFECT! So I give you my greatest gratitude. And I love Jeremy too haha. **

**Arrow the Wolf: Haha I like that name actually. **

**PeddieHOA: I love hearing that about Gwen. I'm still paranoid about her not being liked haha. And yes, it is Quake. Virtual cookies for you!**

**xdemonbunnyx: I miss the fluff too haha. I promise though, I will make up for it. There's like 34 chapters in total for this story at the moment. I've got it vaguely planned out. Haha everyone falls under Loki's spell! And yes, there are more installments to come. I'm unsure how many at the moment, but I think there will be a total of five or six which includes this one and Powers.**

**AngelVamp6688: Virtual cookies for you! That's really awesome! I totally want one. The only encyclopedia type thing I have is several ultimate Star Wars guides haha.**

**Jimmy 144: Thank you very much!**

* * *

**Chapter Six**

Gwen had watched the other SUV drive off in the direction she had come from before the vehicle she sat in began to move. Gwen watched out the window as they drove into a suburban area. Each house looked the same except for being different colors. Gwen no longer felt nervous about recruiting this Barbara Morse as they pulled into the driveway to a one-story home that was painted a dark brown.

Gwen stepped out of the car and approached the front door. She reached out to the button on the left side of the door and pushed it. The dinging of the doorbell could be heard. Gwen barely heard the footsteps that approached the door.

The door opened revealing Barbara, her shoulder length blonde hair in a ponytail. She was wearing denim shorts along with a striped, button down top.

"Hi," said Barbara, "uh, can I help you?"

"I'm Agent Gwendolyn Powers-"

"Great," said Barbara, cutting her off and rolling her eyes. "You're from SHIELD, aren't you?"

"Yes I am, but-"

"Listen, Agent Powers, I am not coming back. It's because of SHIELD that I was horribly tortured."

"I understand, but-"

"I don't even understand how you found me."

"We never lost you," answered Gwen, her stomach sinking as she said it. That was certainly a terrible thing to say.

"Well isn't that just fantastic," said Barbara sarcastically. "I suppose Fury has been waiting for the right moment to send someone."

"He has. Right now we're dealing with world crisis-"

"SHIELD's _always_ dealing with a world crisis."

"Please, Miss Morse-"

"I am done with SHIELD! I bet they sent you because you don't know me like Nat and Clint."

"What difference does it make?"

Barbara scoffed. "Nat trained with me for some time and Clint and I went on dozens of missions together."

"Then don't you think it'd be easier for them to convince you to come back?"

Barbara was silent as she realized that Gwen was right.

"I don't know why Fury wants you back," said Gwen, "but even he seems shaken about what's happening."

"I don't want to be a part of this."

"I understand, but we need all the help we can get."

There was a horrible silence in which Barbara looked like she was debating something. Then she sighed.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you," she finally said. Barbara began closing the door, but Gwen stopped her.

"I'm not leaving until you come with me," said Gwen confidently.

Barbara actually smiled at this. "You're stubborn. I like that." She opened the door again. "Maybe things have changed if Fury's sending out someone like you. I suppose I could come along."

Feeling elated, Gwen smiled and nodded. "I'll give you an hour to back your things, Doctor Morse."

Barbara nodded. "I'll come outside when I'm ready."

She then closed the door and Gwen waited for a moment, unsure if Barbara would try to take off. Gwen shook her head at this idea and got back in the car. She was joined by Barbara nearly thirty minutes later.

"This better be good," she muttered as Agent Lyndon put her suitcase in the trunk.

And with that, the SUV began driving back to the landing pad.

* * *

Tony had forgotten how much he loved his home in Malibu. He had insisted once the quinjet landed that he be taken there and that his friend be invited to the house. Tony had also demanded that no one else from SHIELD follow him. He didn't need them.

The doorbell rang while Tony poured some liquid into two separate glasses.

"James Rhodes is at the door, sir," stated JARVIS.

"Let him in."

"Yes, sir."

Tony picked up the glasses and began walking from the kitchen to the front door where Rhodey was standing, wearing his uniform.

"You didn't tell me you'd be coming back!" the man exclaimed with a smile.

"It wasn't important," answered Tony, shrugging. He handed Rhodey a glass.

"So, why did you need to see me so urgently?"

"Y'see, we have a problem."

Rhodey raised his eyebrows. "A problem?"

"Yep. Well, it's more SHIELD's problem, but seeing as they rely in superheroes and stuff, it's also my problem. Which leads me to the answer to your question."

Tony took a sip of his drink.

"I need you to come with me."

"What?" asked Rhodey laughing. "This is some type of joke, isn't it?"

"Since when do I joke?"

Rhodey rolled his eyes.

"Okay, okay, I joke all the time. Point taken. But I am serious."

"What's this problem you mentioned?"

"I don't know."

"Now you've got to be joking. You expect to just show up back here, give me a drink, ask me to come help you with a problem and then you don't even know what the problem is?"

Tony sighed. "I know it's a stretch. But listen to me. You'll get to wear a suit."

This got Rhodey's interest. His eyes widened and his eyebrows rose again.

"Which suit?" he asked.

"I hope you don't mind, but I made one just for you. It's in the tower."

"I don't mind at all. But what's the catch?"

"You have to come with me."

Rhodey took a sip of his drink as he thought.

"So if I come with you, I get a new suit all to myself?"

Tony nodded. "Unless you want someone else to have it-"

"No, no, no," replied Rhodey quickly. "I'll do it."

"I hope you're not just doing it for the suit, but for me."

"Then you're going to have to just keep hoping."

Tony couldn't help but let out a laugh as he refilled their glasses.

* * *

**Virtual cake to everyone who can give me Barbara's alias! And to those who already have, you will get your cake next chapter.**


	7. Chapter Seven

**To all who said Barbara is Mockingbird, you shall get virtual cake!**

**As a side note, I'm watching Harry Potter right now and my poor George has lost his ear and has spied on Harry and Ginny. THE BEST SCENE.**

**me: Virtual cake for you!**

**miller330: Thank you!**

**FallenAngelFox: Virtual cake for you! :D**

**KiyUzumaki: Thank you! **

**Jayc Black: Haha, virtual cake for you! **

**Arrows the Wolf: I couldn't help but add Rhodey when I re-watched Iron Man. I was like, he needs to come with.**

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

Nick Fury found himself in a dark office above Times Square's Gem Theater. There wasn't much in the office except a few steel shelving units and a desk where a man sat behind it, looking at some papers. A dim lamp was the only thing illuminating the room as there were no windows.

"Mr. Lucas?" asked Fury, alerting his presence in the office.

The man looked up. He had dark skin and brown eyes. His head was shaved and he was wearing a tight black t-shirt which highlighted his muscles.

"Nick Fury," said Mr. Lucas in a deep voice, "why am I not surprised."

"Maybe you've been noticing some odd things happening on your Hero for Hire missions."

Mr. Lucas laughed, though he wasn't amused. "I've seen a few odd things in my lifetime."

"Good, because we want you to help us fight one."

Mr. Lucas sat back in his chair, eyeing Fury carefully.

"I think I made my stance clear the last time you approached me," he said at last.

"You did," answered Fury. "So I decided I wouldn't come to you unless it was absolutely necessary."

"So obviously something really bad is happening."

"You could say that."

Mr. Lucas sighed. "Give me one good reason."

"We'll pay you whatever you want," answered Fury.

"Then why me?"

"We could use someone with your abilities."

There was silence as Mr. Lucas thought. "Y'know, I don't see what makes your mission so special."

"Accept and you will."

"You really know how to bargain Fury. Alright...I'll join you."

"Good to hear, Mr. Lucas. You has one hour and then I expect you outside."

Fury turned around, his trench coat billowing behind him.

"By the way, Fury," said Mr. Lucas. "My name's not Lucas anymore."

"Then what is it?"

"Luke Cage."

* * *

When the SUV arrived back at the quinjet, Gwen was the first to get out, followed by Barbara. She led the former agent onto the quinjet where Daisy was already seated and looking at a tablet like the one Gwen had used on the way there.

"I wish I had known what you could do before," said Daisy looking up from the tablet with a smile. "This is amazing."

Gwen wasn't quite sure how to react to this. "Thanks."

"This Doctor Banner guy, do you think he could help me find out what happened to me?"

"I'm sure he'd be happy to help."

"Wait," said Barbara, "Doctor Banner? _The_ Doctor Banner?"

Agent Lyndon handed over another tablet to Barbara as she sat down next to Daisy. The two of them watched in awe at the different videos the tablet showed them of the different Avengers.

"I remember learning about Captain America!" exclaimed Daisy.

"Of course there's Tony Stark," laughed Barbara. She squinted her eyes at something and then there was some sort of recognition on her face. Gwen wasn't quite sure what the woman was looking at, but she assumed it was probably the profile of Natasha or Clint.

"Do you know who else is coming?" asked Daisy as the quinjet lifted and began the flight to helicarrier in New York.

"Two people in New Mexico along with a scientist that already worked for us," answered Gwen. "There's some other people, but I don't know who they are."

"This should be really interesting," added Barbara in a quiet voice as she slid her finger around on the tablet. Gwen moved closer and stole a glance as she saw that Barbara was examining Clint's profile. Gwen looked away quickly before she was caught.

Gwen began to wonder how Steve was doing and couldn't wait to get back to him. It had only been a few hours, but she still missed him. But then again, it wasn't like she needed to be with him at all times. It was just nice in a situation where the world was supposedly in danger to be with Steve. She couldn't wait to tell him how easily she recruited these people. And she actually couldn't wait to show off to Daisy and Barbara that she was dating _the_ Captain America. Gwen wasn't one to brag, but from the way Daisy sounded, he was like a celebrity to them as well.

"I've never been to New York," said Daisy, taking Gwen out of her thoughts.

"It's not as great as everyone says," said Barbara. "At least not to me."

"We won't be landing in New York," stated Gwen. "Well, not exactly."

"We're going to the helicarrier, aren't we?"

"Yep."

"What's the helicarrier?" aske Daisy.

"Technically it's SHIELD's base," explained Barbara. "The last time I was there, I had just gotten rescued from being an experiment."

Daisy became very quiet and looked rather uncomfortable at the turn of the conversation. Barbara didn't look uncomfortable at all whlie Gwen just watched the two, enjoying the slight personality clash.

It wasn't that long before the quinjet approached the helicarrier and Gwen became excited.

She was going to find out what was happing very soon.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Okay, so this is the last of the recruiting chapters! Yay!**

**dragonrain618: I'm excited too! He was the first person I even thought of.**

**Jayc Black: Aww, thanks! :)**

**miller330: Thank you! :D**

**Itsgoose2u: Haha perhaps.**

**Arrows the Wolf: I know right? I have a friend who also prefers Fred. We argue about it all the time haha. **

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I SMELL A LOVE TRIANGLE! Also, thanks. It's good to know I have someone to refer to if I hit any writers block :)**

**Torilovesu: Thank you! :)**

**xdemonbunnyx: Haha, you're welcome! I wish my dad was into all this stuff, but at least I have my mom.**

**AngelVamp6688: I know, Rhodey is beast! Haha.**

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

Phil Coulson found himself in Philadelphia after Fury sent him off to visit Stephen. Of course, Phil knew that Stephen would never decline the opportunity to work with magical artifacts. The man's house was practically a museum filled with them.

Phil stepped out of the black SUV he was transported in and approached Stephen's front door. The man lived a large white mansion and the front door possessed a knocker. Phil used it, knocking several times.

It wasn't long before the door was opened by a tall man with black hair except for white hair at his temples and gray eyes. He was wearing a purple suit and smiled at Phil.

"Agent Couslon, how nice to see you," he said. "Come in."

"I'm sorry, but I'm in a bit of a rush," answered Phil.

Stephen raised his eyebrows. "And why is that?"

"We're dealing with an outer worldly being. Apparently he's looking for something."

"What something?"

"I can't tell you. But I'm sure you'd love to help us look for it."

"And why can't you tell me?"

"We don't want word getting out that we're looking for it."

"Does SHIELD not trust me?"

"No, but we don't trust other people."

Stephen smiled. "You say outer worldly. Could this have anything to do with that god? The sorcerer?"

"He's the one who warned us."

"Hmm...so I assume if I say no I'll die of wondering what this object is?"

"It wouldn't surprise me."

"I must say, Agent Couslon, you have given me no other option but saying yes."

"That's what I was hoping for."

"And all of my collections...?"

"They will be transported to our base. Anything that can't be will be stored in a storage facility under SHIELD's watch. It will be safe."

"Alright then. I will join you in your endeavor to find this object."

Phil nodded. "Good. You have one hour to pack up your necessities. Thank you for your cooperation, Doctor Strange."

* * *

Gwen was happy to arrive back on the helicarrier. She really wanted to see Steve again and tell him all about how successful the trip had been.

The moment the door to the quinjet opened, Agent Maria Hill greeted her.

"I see you did a good job," she said, looking at the two new people to the helicarrier.

"You sound surprised," teased Gwen.

"Well, I'm surprised to see Agent Morse. I never thought someone could actually bring her back."

Agent Hill became quiet as Daisy and Barbara climbed out of the aircraft. Barbara looked at Agent Hill and gave a small smile while extending her hand.

"Maria," she said.

"Barbara," answered Agent Hill, shaking the other woman's hand. "Both of you are to come with me. Director Fury should be here soon. He'd like to talk to you and the others once they've arrived."

They both nodded and Agent Hill turned back to Gwen.

"I'm sure Captain Rogers is waiting for you in the conference room," she added with a smile.

Gwen blushed as the three women walked in a different direction. Gwen quickly pivoted on her heel and walked fast to the conference room. In there, she found many extra chairs around the table.

At one end sat Thor and Loki, deep in conversation, though Thor was doing the most talking. There were two empty chairs next to Thor and then next to those was Bruce, Tony and Pepper, the three of them having their own conversation. Then came Natasha, Clint and Steve.

Gwen silently sat down next to Steve. Natasha gave her a smile. Steve turned around in his seat to see who Natasha was looking at and a large grin appeared on his face when he saw Gwen. She smile back at him as he turned his full attention to her.

"How did it go?" he asked.

"I convinced them," answered Gwen with a smirk.

"I knew you could."

Steve slung his arm around her shoulders the best he could. Gwen smiled contently as she leaned into his body.

"One of them seemed excited to meet you," added Gwen.

"Great," said Steve sarcastically.

"You're going to have to accept the fact that Captain America is famous."

"What about Steve Rogers?"

"You're a superhero. People aren't supposed to know your secret identity."

She could nearly hear Steve smile at her joke as they continued to wait for the others to arrive.

* * *

It wasn't often that Fury was forced to fly to England in a short amount of time, but he was rather relieved that his destination was probably one of the shortest distances from New York.

Fury stepped out of the black SUV which had transported him to the right location. It was a small house that was secluded by mountains and forests. Fury walked up the long pathway to the front door and rang the doorbell. It almost looked comical.

The door opened slowly and a face peeked out of the crack.

"Sorry, I'm busy!" the man exclaimed.

Fury put his boot in the crack to keep the door open. "You're going to have to rearrange your schedule then, Doctor Pym."

Doctor Pym laughed. "Fury, I really don't want this."

"Trust me, we don't want what's happening."

Doctor Pym seemed to pause for a moment. Very slowly and carefully, he opened the door and revealed himself.

The man had blonde hair and blue eyes. He was skinny and was wearing a lab coat over suspenders and a blue button down shirt.

"There's something wrong, isn't there?" he asked.

Fury nodded. "And we could use your help."

Doctor Pym laughed and rubbed his chin. "What kind of help?"

"Doctor, I have done everything I can to keep you and your work secret. I have become a hypocrite within SHIELD. I made sure that no one found out about your accident and that you could continue your research in peace. But right now, things have to change."

"So you need my intelligence?"

"Yes. We're looking for something."

"What are you looking for?"

"It's classified. It won't be if you come with us."

Doctor Pym thought for a moment while he rubbed his chin again. "And what about my ant farms?"

Fury gave a snort of a laugh. "Trust me, Doctor. Where we're going, you'll have enough room for an ant city."

"They'll be transported then?"

"Along with all of your equipment."

"Seems like a pretty good deal, I suppose. Will I be fighting gods like you seem to be doing every few months?"

"You don't have to fight," said Fury. "Not unless you want to. Besides, it's not technically a god we're dealing with."

Doctor Pym raised his eyebrows. "Technically?"

"You'll find out soon."

"Alright."

"Good. You have an hour to pack up your immediate needs."

Doctor Pym nodded. "Okay."

Fury waited for the doctor to return with a suitcase, his lab coat no longer on. He led Doctor Pym to the SUV and they climbed inside. Fury felt relieved he could finally get back to the helicarrier and prayed that everyone else came back with who they were supposed to.

Because without the extra help, the earth would be lost.

* * *

**Virtual chocolate frogs to all who can give me Doctor Pym's alias! (I already gave away Doctor Strange.)**


	9. Chapter Nine

**To all of those who said that Doctor Pym is Ant-Man/Giant-Man/The Wasp/Yellowjacket, you get virtual chocolate frogs!**

**I'm also having another movie day with my mom. We're dealing with a lot of crap and needed a day to ourselves. So we're watching the same films as last time, except not _Chronicle_. Instead it's _Iron Man 2_. I'm super excited because we've only watched it once. EVER.**

**anon: Thank you and virtual chocolate frogs for you!**

**MysticRyter: That is one of his aliases, so virtual chocolate frogs for you!**

**Liliesshadow: Then my evil plan is working muahaha.**

**Arrows the Wolf: That's the same thing I think when I write fluff. I'm just like STOP BEING SO ADORABLE.**

**Snow: Virtual chocolate frogs for you! And yes, I will tell you that Peter will be in the next installment. I'd like to see the new Spider-Man film, though, so I can try to base his personality off of that.**

**Itsgoose2u: Haha thanks :)**

**Supernaturalxfan172: Virtual chocolate frogs for you! **

**Silentflier: Virtual chocolate frogs for you! Thank you so much!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Virtual chocolate frogs for you! Haha, I'm glad you're excited about it. I'm actually excited about the love triangle seeing as Natasha can get pretty badass when she wants to.**

**dragonrain618: Haha thanks! Glad to heart that! And virtual chocolate frogs for you!**

**xdemonbunnyx: Haha I guess this story has an influence. It certainly is better each time you go see it.**

**Torilovesu: Virtual chocolate frogs for you!**

**AngelVamp6688: Virtual chocolate frogs for you! They can move it you want them to. I was disappointed when I got one that the theme park in Florida and they didn't move. But I did get Godric Gryffindor haha. **

**KiyUzumaki: Thanks, that's great to hear!**

**yesiamweird: Don't worry, Janet will come in time! I have plans for how to bring her into the story. And it's also funny you mentioned Earth's Mightiest Heros...I watched part of an episode the other day because I wanted to see how they did Loki haha. I'll have to watch some more. I didn't even think of your suggestion. **

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

"Are you sure it is time, Heimdall?" asked Sif.

"It is the only time," he replied.

Sif stood with the Warriors Three, facing the tesseract which sat upon a table. On the other side was Heimdall and Frigga. The Queen was already looking weary as Asgard was still in a panic, but she gave off a strong vibe.

"Are you sure you will be fine on your own, my Queen?" asked Sif.

"I will be fine," answered Frigga. "You should go. Midgard needs you. My sons need you."

Sif nodded, the Warriors Three following the gesture.

"You will have only seconds to get through the portal," explained Heimdall. "It will then be closed until Midgard is safe."

"Thank you, Heimdall," said Volstagg.

Heimdall approached the tesseract and picked it up. With concentration, it shot out a beam of light and stopped at an invisible wall. It ripped open the air and the Midgardian sky could be seen on the other side of the portal.

"Hurry," said Heimdall.

They jumped forward and into the portal, leaving Asgard behind them.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen," said familiar a voice coming from the doorway, "I'd like you to meet your new, and one old, teammates."

Everyone's attention turned to the door as Fury strode in, followed by Phil, taking his place at the front of the table. Gwen craned her neck to see who was coming in.

She watched as a group of random people came into the conference room. The first two were women, one with light brown hair and the other dark.

"Jane!"

Gwen whipped her head to see Thor standing up, his face the brightest she had ever seen it.

The woman she assumed was named Jane smiled just as big as Thor as she rushed over to him and they embraced. She saw them kiss as well. The other woman, who was playing on what seemed to be her iPod, followed her over. The two took the empty seats that sat there.

The next two were Daisy and Barbara. Daisy sat down on Gwen's other side and smiled. Gwen smiled back.

"Bobbi?" asked Clint looking very shocked. Natasha looked surprised as well.

Barbara offered them a small smile as she sat down next to Daisy. Gwen couldn't help but notice the strange look in Clint's face that she couldn't quite understand.

Next came a dark skinned man wearing a black t-shirt. He had a shaved head and sort of reminded Gwen of Fury except this man had both eyes. He took a seat.

He was followed by an older looking man that Gwen recognized as Erik Selvig. He nodded in Thor's direction and paused when his eyes landed on Loki. He eventually took a seat.

Then came another man with dark skin. He nodded at Tony and she assumed this was the billionaire's friend.

After he sat down, two more men came in. One was wearing an odd purple suit and the other wore suspenders. Both took seats, the strange one looking at Loki with interest.

Behind them all had been Agent Hill who walked inside and closed the door behind her. She put her hands behind her back and looked over to Fury. Everyone else took this as their cue to look at him as well.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet the new recruits," he said. "This is Jane Foster-" He pointed to the woman who embraced Thor. She gave a small smile. "-and Darcy Lewis." He then pointed to the other woman.

"Hi," said Darcy. "So, do you guys, like, not have wi-fi?"

Fury rolled his eyes. "This is Daisy Johnson." He motioned towards Daisy. "She has the ability to produce powerful waves of vibrations that mirror earthquakes."

Gwen saw Bruce nod in interest, obviously intrigued by the young woman's power.

"And this is Doctor Barbara Morse," continued Fury, pointing at Barbara. "Some of you may know her as a SHIELD agent. However, I have requested her return to help us with our new base."

"Yeah, about that, you still haven't told us where that is," said Tony.

"We'll get to that, Stark. Anyway, this Luke Cage." Fury motioned to the large man in the black t-shirt. "He was a part of an experiment that ended up turning his skin into the equivalent of steel. He is here because we are facing a large threat and he could be a large asset to us."

In all honesty, Gwen felt slightly frightened by Luke.

"And this is, as you all know, Doctor Erik Selvig."

Erik nodded meekly, still uncomfortable with Loki's presence.

"This is Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes." Fury motioned to Tony's friend.

"You can call me Rhodey," said the man.

"Alright, Rhodey," continued Fury. "He's a friend of Stark's."

"And a damn good fighter," added Tony with a wink.

Fury shot Tony a glare. "Anyway, this is Doctor Stephen Strange." He motioned to the man in the purple suit. "He specializes in magical objects. He will be helping us in our mission."

Gwen couldn't help but begin wondering what magic had to do with whatever SHIELD was looking for.

"And lastly, this is Doctor Henry-"

"Hank," corrected the man.

"Doctor Hank Pym. He's good with an unusal set of subatomic particles."

Everyone nodded at each other in acknowledgement, some people's eyes lingering over the Avengers as they were the ones who had saved New York City. Twice.

"So, are you going to tell us what this mission is?" asked Tony impatiently.

"Just one more thing-"

Fury was interrupted by four loud bangs on the top of the helicarrier.

"What in the - Agent Hill. Go see what that was."

"Yes, sir."

Agent Hill left the room, but was back inside nearly instantly, looking surprised as she was followed by four new people.

And all Gwen heard as she stated at the people in shock was Thor exclaiming, "My friends!"

* * *

**Just out of pure curiosity, has anyone here heard of the "Obituary Burglar?" He's from Wisconsin and I know this has made national news in the states, but I don't know about other countries. **


	10. Chapter Ten

**Good day everyone. I think I'll try to post again later today, but I'm not sure. Anyway...**

**Nagrom Renin: Thank you very much!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Natasha's so awesome. Not a big fan of Scarlett Johansson, but Black Widow's pretty cool. I already have in mind some things I'm going to do regarding this love triangle. I'm actually kind of excited to add some more drama to the story haha.**

**MysticRyter: YAY! Haha.**

**AngelVamp6688: Yeah, Wisconsin is pretty strange. That whole recall thing was such a waste of money. Anyway, thank you! I actually was planning on bringing Daredevil in. I was debating between him and Bucky actually.**

**Arrows the Wolf: I know right? I wish I could bring in the Howling Commandos, but they're like all dead now. Except maybe one...**

**Itsgoose2u: Thank you! Thor's so much fun to write haha.**

**firemage23: Haha he really does have an army now!**

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

"There's more of them?" whispered Steve. His eyes were wide as he stared along with everyone else in the room.

Gwen watched as Thor got up and walked around the table. His face was radiant with happiness as he approached the four new people. Loki had sunk down in his seat and looked like he wanted to die.

The first newcomer was a woman with long dark hair that was pulled into a ponytail at the back of her head. She wore armor as well as the others. Then there was a man with a mustache and beard and also had a vibe that reminded Gwen of Tony. Next was a plump man with a long red beard and following him was another man who looked even crabbier than Fury.

"Who the _hell_ are these people?" asked Fury looking very infuriated. His one eye was wide and his hands were on his hips.

"Humans, this is Lady Sif," said Thor, putting his arm around the woman's shoulders. Gwen noticed she was holding a shield and a dangerous and sharp looking object.

"And I am Fandral," said the man who seemed a lot like Tony.

"I am Volstagg," said the plump man. "And this is Hogun. He never smiles."

The man named Hogun looked even crabbier at the comment.

"And why are you here?" asked Fury, still sounding angry.

"Heimdall said that we were needed on Midgard," answered Sif.

"How is my mother doing?" asked Thor.

"She is fairing well," replied Volstagg. "She even sent us off after a nice feast."

"Well, it was by your request," added Fandral.

Gwen was astonished at how there were now six Asgardians in the conference room. This really had turned into some sort of freak show.

"Are you here to stay?" asked Thor.

"We will not leave until he is defeated," answered Hogun.

"Until who is defeated?" asked Tony. "Will you tell us _now?"_

Fury rubbed a hand over his face as he looked at everyone around him.

"This is messed up," whispered Clint. Gwen stifled a laugh.

"We're going to need more rooms at the base," said Fury to Agent Hill. "Go send a message. And be very clear as to why."

"Yes, sir," she replied and left the room.

"What base?" asked Tony.

"Stark, let me just figure this out," said Fury. "Okay, so you're from Asgard. You've been sent to help, correct?"

"Correct, Lord Patch," said Fandral, his posture completely straight. He sounded completely serious.

Gwen's lips were twisted into a smile and she looked around to see everyone else's reaction to this new name. It seemed most people were stifling a laugh while Tony didn't stop himself.

"My name is Nick Fury," said Fury calmly, though he looked irritated by being called "Lord Patch." Gwen had a feeling Tony was going to remember that one.

* * *

It bothered Loki to no end that no one trusted him. Granted he was the god of mischief and lies and no one should trust someone like that. But he had told the warning to everyone, yet he was monitored every second he was on this floating fortress. And now all of the others were here and everyone trusted them instantly. True, he had tried to take over Midgard twice now, but he had changed. No one understood this. Except maybe Gwen. He noticed that she treated him nicer than the others. He had been surprised when she had let him in her home.

But now as he looked up and saw Thor's best friends standing in this conference room, he couldn't help but feel slightly alone. Everyone seemed to have forgotten he was there. Not even the other Asgardians noticed him. So it was back to living in the shadows, it seemed.

Loki took a deep breath to calm himself. He may of changed, but he could still feel jealousy. He could still envy. He still wanted to be equal to Thor. Granted Odin had made him feel better with the words that had been spoken, Loki still felt slightly the same. He still felt as though others didn't think he was good enough.

And he was going to prove them wrong.

* * *

After everyone had finally settled down and more chairs had been brought in for the newcomers from Asgard, Fury moved back to the front of the table. His hands were placed upon his hips as he looked out over every single one of them. Gwen looked around and counted twenty five people in the room. She felt her heart start racing as she realize how many people this was. Obviously something really bad was happening, especially if more gods were sent to help.

"So," said Tony, leaning back in his chair, "are you going to tell us what is happening now?"

"Not until we reach our new base."

"Will you tell us where that is?" asked Bruce.

"Is there wi-fi there?" asked Darcy.

"Stop with the wi-fi," hissed Jane.

"First of all," said Fury, "I need to discuss some things with Doctor Morse."

He strode to the door and motioned for Barbara to go with him. She got up and followed.

Gwen turned back to Steve who was still looking at everyone, particularly the Asgardians. If he had ever been shocked by Thor, he was far beyond that now. Gwen was just happy that they were friendly and on their side. It was never good to have a god as an enemy.

Fury finally came back in, followed by a stunned Barbara. Everyone looked from one to the other and then kept their eyes on Fury, hoping that he'd finally tell them something. It was obvious everyone was getting irritated now, especially Tony.

"Right now equiment that belongs to several of you is being transferred to our new base," stated Fury. "I promise you that nothing will be damaged."

"And where is the new base?" asked Tony impatiently.

Even Fury couldn't hide a smile when he finally answered.

"Atlantis."


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Just as a fun fact, my mom took her Loki action figure and not only put it in her soda, but in some ice cream and in a box of milk duds. And then took pictures.**

**KiyUzumaki: Thank you :)**

**Jimmy 144: Glad you liked it :D**

**PeddieHOA: Wow, thanks so much! It's really great to hear that.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha, I love Fandral too. Writing Tony is easy for me and therefore writing Fandral is easy too. I'm actually working on a Thor fic which involves him constantly flirting with my OC's younger sister and my OC uses Loki to get back at him. Ehehe. Loki is a badass. I don't understand how anyone could NOT like him. I do have big plans for him though...**

**MysticRyter: Haha that would be interesting. I like Black Widow with Hawkeye, but I honestly feel like it's almost like an automatic ship. Like when I first saw the Avengers and Loki was like "Is this love?" I'm just like "I'LL GO DOWN WITH THIS SHIP."**

**Itsgoose2u: Haha, thank you :D**

**Arrows the Wolf: It's okay to burst out laughing. I wrote I line said by a character to Fury in like chapter 23 and every time I read it I laugh.**

**AngelVamp6688: I would love for Bucky to come back. I've explained to my mom the whole Winter Soldier thing and I think it could also be something that Gwen could help Steve face like the whole fact that his best friend is alive, but he doesn't have his memories type thing. Also, you submitted the 100th review for this story so CHEERS!**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

"D - did you say Atlantis?" asked Jane, her eyes wide just like everyone else.

"Yes I did, Miss Foster."

There was a stunned silence that followed. Then Tony began laughing.

"You're joking, right?" he asked. Fury looked Tony in the eye and Tony's smile vanished. "You're serious."

"Of course I'm serious, Stark!" exclaimed Fury.

"But how is that possible?" asked Hank.

"We found it while searching for a base of another agency. It's uninhabited. We fixed up and now it's livable."

"Where is it?" asked Pepper.

"In the middle of the Atlantic Ocean," answered Fury. "We believe it used to be above water, but it was flooded."

"But why there?" asked Gwen.

"The helicarrier doesn't have enough room for this many people. Besides, the labs there are the best in the world. I'm sure everyone will be able to have enough space."

"When are we leaving?" asked Bruce.

"We already did. Since there's not enough room on a single quinjet for all of us to go on, the helicarrier is going to land on the water."

"And when are we going to find out what this danger is?" asked Luke.

"When we get there."

"Why can't we know _now_?" whined Tony.

Fury sighed. "Just deal with it Stark. It will be easier to explain when we're there. There will be an announcement throughout the helicarrier when we arrive. You're to be on top after it happens. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir," said all of the SHIELD agents. The rest nodded or, if they were from Asgard, stood up taller and looked like they were ready to fight something. Gwen wasn't too sure about them all.

"Good. You're all dismissed. We should be there in about twenty minutes."

Gwen watched as everyone moved around her. Clint and Natasha got up to talk to Barbara. Gwen noticed that Clint looked the happiest she had ever seen him.

Thor along with all of his friends, mortal and god, were in conversation. Loki, however, remained seated and was approached by Stephen, who began talking animatedly and using a lot of different hand gestures. Loki seemed only slightly interested.

All of the rest sort of talked amongst themselves. Gwen turned to Steve who was looking around at all the new people.

"Are you okay?" asked Gwen. She put a hand lightly on his muscular arm.

Steve turned to look at Gwen and smiled. "I was just thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

"Just some stuff."

"You're not gonna tell me, are you?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Are you sure?"

Steve paused for a moment. "Well, I was just-"

"Come, my friends!" interrupted Thor's booming voice. "Let me show you the magnificent center of commanding!"

Gwen turned to see Thor happily leading the other Asgardians out of the conference room, followed by a giggling Jane and Darcy who was snapping pictures of everything with her iPod, but secretly as though she thought SHIELD would confiscate it.

"This is so weird," muttered Gwen as she and Steve walked out of the conference room, hand in hand.

"Wait," said Steve. He let go of her hand and went back into the conference room as Tony, Pepper, Bruce and Rhodey all came out.

"Hey, Gwendolyn."

Gwen turned to see Rhodey, his hand outstretched.

"Oh, hi," she answered, shaking his hand. "I didn't even recognize you when you came in."

"Yeah, well we only talked a couple of times."

"Did I say you could talk to my friend?" asked Tony, stepping in front of Rhodey defensively.

"No, but I don't listen to you anyway," she retorted.

"Bless her, she's using my own words against me."

He patted her on the cheek as he led his friends away from the conference room. Just when they were out of sight, Steve came back out.

"I gave the cards to Agent Coulson," he said, looking happy with what he did.

"The trading cards?"

He nodded.

Gwen smiled. "That was very nice of you."

And then they kissed before making their way down the hall.

* * *

"Bobbi, I just can't believe it!" exclaimed Clint happily.

"Believe what?" asked Barbara. "That I'm alive."

Clint's face suddenly turned red. "No, that you're here."

Barbara smiled. "I can't believe it either."

"What have you been doing all this time?" asked Natasha, who seemed to notice Clint's sudden awkwardness. She didn't like the look of it. Natasha would never admit it, but she had been slightly glad when Barbara had left. She didn't realize why for a while, though. Then it became clear to her that she thought of Clint as more than a friend. But she had said it herself, "love is for children." But she couldn't help but want to be a child when she was with him.

"I've been posing as a biologist," answered Barbara. "I was also doing some things on marine biology."

"Is that why Fury wanted to talk to you?" asked Clint. "Y'know, with the whole Atlantis thing?"

"Yeah. I happen to know more about fish than the average person."

Clint laughed along with Barbara as the two walked side by side down the hall. Natasha was slightly behind them, her lips drawn in a thin line.

Maybe she was wrong and Clint was just simply happy to have a friend back. But Natasha couldn't help but remember the way Clint looked when Barbara left.

And so Natasha remained silent as she tried to not listen to Clint, who sounded the happiest he had ever been. And it was because of someone other than Natasha.


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Okay, so regarding the love triangle going on here, I will tell you that it doesn't end until the last installment and I'm planning on there being six installments in total which includes this one and Powers. So just bear with me on this! I think you'll all be pleased in the end!**

**Evelyn: I sure will haha.**

**miller330: I'm excited too!**

**Arrows the Wolf: They are...but you might not have to live with it, you might have to...depends on how the story goes (muahaha)**

**AngelVamp6688: Yes, there are characters there. One is actuallly referenced later on. When I found the Great Lakes Avengers I was like I LIVE NEXT TO LAKE MICHAGAN WEE!**

**snowyclara: Google is the answer for everything. And I'm also glad you're shouting at Clint and not me. That must mean I'm doing my job well haha. And thanks for the feedback on Atlantis being cool. I had been re-playing the video game _Ultimate Alliance_ and there's a part in Atlantis and I sort of was like, that'd be cool.**

**xdemonbunnyx: Trust me, it'll get kinda messy...**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

Gwen and Steve had walked through helicarrier as far away from the others as possible. It wasn't that they were anti-social at all, it was just too many people in such a small space. Besides, Gwen wasn't too interested in seeing five Asgardians wander through the command center. She could picture the chaos in her head perfectly.

There was a sudden beep throughout the helicarrier.

"Everyone asked must now report to the top of the ship," came Agent Hill's voice through an intercom. "I repeat, report to the top of the ship."

Gwen and Steve followed the orders and made their way top. Once the door at the end of the hallway slid open, the sun blinded the couple. They continued outside and Gwen saw many others had come out already. She hadn't even noticed that the helicarrier was now sitting on the water.

They walked to the far end of the helicarrier where Clint, Natasha, Barbara, Thor, Sif, the Warriors Three, Thor, Loki and Fury were all standing. They were soon accompanied by all of the others.

"Ladies and gentlemen," began Fury, looking at them all with his hands behind his back. "We will now enter the city of Atlantis. I will lead you to the city's briefing room. There everything will be explained. Ready?"

Everyone nodded eagerly.

Fury smirked as he turned around and punched in a code on a panel. Gwen got on the tips of her toes to see over everyone's heads. She saw what seemed to be the top of a tower coming out of the water. The structure was of the color gold and in a cylinder shape. There was a pair of grand doors, also gold, that were opening automatically while a gold bridge began to extend from underneath the doors until it connected with the helicarrier.

"Well I'll be darned," muttered Tony behind Gwen.

Fury stepped onto the bridge and began walking towards the doors. All of the others followed him, a couple of them looking uneasily down at the waters below.

They finally entered the doors which Gwen realized was the entrance to a hallway. The walls were gold like the exterior, but the floors looked like marble. Everyone's footsteps were loud on the cold, hard floor and each step echoed throughout the entire hall.

They approached another set of grand doors which opened at the motion of them coming towards it. Gwen gasped as she looked inside.

After they walked through the doors, they found themselves at the top of a large staircase that reminded Gwen of the Titanic. There were statues everywhere of mermen with fins and long beards. Each statue held a large trident. Gwen felt slightly intimated by them as they had to be at least three times taller than her.

They went down the staircase and Gwen looked up to see an odd looking chandelier that had strange looking candles resting in it. There were windows around them and Gwen saw that they were indeed under water.

Fury led them forward and through another set of doors. It seemed this was some sort of lobby area or at least a common room. A fireplace sat against a wall and many chairs, sofas and tables were placed around it. There were different staircases and doors everywhere.

Gwen went with the crowd as they entered a door on their right. The door was gold, just like all of the others. As they entered, she realized that SHIELD must have massively changed the room they were in.

A large round table sat in center of this large room with dozens of chairs around it. Each chair was leather and large and very comfortable looking. At the far end of the room and connected to the wall was a huge blank and see-through screen that she assumed was some type of monitor.

"Everyone, take a seat," said Fury. "Except Thor and Loki. You'll be explaining everything."

Gwen, still mesmerized by the place, sat down in one of the seats. It was butt-heaven.

Steve sat on her right and Tony sat on her left. The others filled in the other seats and Thor dragged Loki to the front of the table where Fury stood.

Once everyone was seated, which did not include Agent Hill and Phil who were standing in the back of the room next to each other, the god of thunder began to speak.

"Your world is threatened," said Thor.

"No duh," whispered Tony.

"There is a Titan by the name of Thanos. My brother had made a deal with him. In return for giving the tesseract to Thanos, Loki would receive an army and rule over Midgard. We have obviously stopped this deal. Loki, unfortunately, tried again not that long ago. After our father's death, Loki had a change of heart."

Gwen saw that Loki looked at the ground when Thor said this, clearly uncomfortable at the stares he was getting.

"He went to Thanos and told him that he would no longer be a part of this deal. With the information Loki has given us, we have come to the conclusion Thanos is coming to Midgard."

"But why?" asked Pepper.

"He is searching for something. Something to go along with what he already has."

"What does he have?" asked Stephen, clearly interested in what was being said.

"The Infinity Gauntlet."

Everyone except the Asgardians and Erik stared at Thor blankly.

"The what?" asked Tony.

"The Infinity Gauntlet," repeated Thor. "It is a magical object that makes one more than a god. My father had won it in battle and placed it in the relics room in the weapons vault in Asgard. He soon realized what power it had and sought to destroy that power. There are six gems that go with the Gauntlet. Those are what give it power. Even with one, it becomes a weapon of destruction. My father had the gems scattered across Midgard in hopes that no one will wield this power."

"How did Thanos get the Gauntlet?" asked Barbara.

"He and one of his armies attacked Asgard. They killed my father and took the Gauntlet."

"Why are the gems _here_?" asked Jane.

"My father wanted them all to be in the same realm so that if something horrible should arise, he could collect them all and use the Gauntlet himself."

"So," said Tony, leaning on the table, "basically we've got another psycho running around. But to stop him, we have to find these gems."

"And they are magical, are they not?" asked Stephen.

"Correct," answered Thor.

"Do you know where they are?" asked Bruce.

"We already have two of them," said Fury. An agent walked in and handed him a black box. He opened it and lifted something from the inside. It was a red gem that was the size of the palm of his hand.

"This is the power gem," stated Thor. "it can access all power and energy that has existed and ever will. It makes one invicinible."

"We found this in the city. We didn't know what it was until Thor and Loki came."

Fury reached into the box again to put the Power gem down and then picked up another gem. This one was green.

"That is the Soul gem," said Thor. "It has an appetite for souls. It can be used to manipulate , steal and control another individual's soul."

"That doesn't sound good," muttered Tony.

"We found this with Doctor Strange's equipment," added Fury.

Everyone looked over at Stephen whose eyes were wide.

"I had no idea of what that was," he explained. "I couldn't get far into its past of magic for it seemed there was some sort of barrier."

"Do we know where the rest of these are?" asked Clint.

Thor shook his head.

"That is why you are all here," cut in Fury. "We are to look for these gems and get them before Thanos."

"Now it all makes sense," muttered Hank, rubbing his chin.

There was a blanket of silence which covered the group for a few seconds as they registered what they just heard.

"What happens if Thanos gets all of the gems?" asked Gwen, voicing the question everyone was thinking.

"He rules the universe," answered Loki, surprising everyone by talking.

"Agent Hill," said Fury, "if you could pass out the keycards now."

She nodded and began walking around the table, placing a futuristic looking card in front of each person. Once Gwen's was put down, she picked it up and watched it turn on. Her face showed up at her touch and she saw all of her information pop up. There were little icons at the bottom of the card.

"What are these?" asked Luke, holding his up.

"These are your key cards, your map and your entire existence," answered Fury. "These will get you into your rooms and all of the other facilities you are allowed in."

Gwen looked back down at her card and pressed the map icon at the bottom. A 3-D map showed up and she realized it was the whole city in the palm of her hand.

"Your living areas are on the east side of the city. You are each assigned a room. There is also a cafeteria and many different labs. There is also a gym and a recreational room for when there isn't much to do. You will find other facilities on the map. You can st a location and it will give you directions to it. I suggest that the doctors get to the labs right away."

All of the smart people nodded.

"Good," said Fury. "Until we find a gem, you are all dismissed."

Everyone got up and looked at their keycards. Gwen selected what seemed to be the rooms everyone would be staying in. She saw under her information that she had room six. She felt Steve grab her hand as they walked out of the briefing room.

"I'm going to see my room," she stated.

"I'll go with you."

They went up another staircase and saw that many others were doing the same thing. There was another set of gold doors that opened and the group found themselves in a large hall. The floor was carpeted and Gwen assumed that was the work of SHIELD. There were doors on both sides of the hall and Gwen walked up to the one labeled "six."

"I'm in room ten," said Steve. "I'll come back in a few minutes."

Gwen nodded and watched as he walked away. She turned back to the door and slid her key over a screen, hoping this was the way to get inside. To her joy, it worked and the door unlocked. She turned the knob and entered it.

The front area of this room was like a study. The walls were blue and the carpet was tan. There was a desk against the wall on the right and a door on the left. She walked through said door and found a bathroom, equipped with all needs. She walked back out and saw a wall next to the desk that extended halfway through the room. She went on the other side of this wall and found a very large bed and a television set next to a dresser and a closet. She wasn't quite sure what channels you could get under the Atlantic Ocean. Beyond this was a balcony. Curious, she opened the sliding glass doors and walked out onto it. It seemed SHIELD had created a dome over it so that people could actually sit on this balcony and watch the fish swim by. It reminded her of those exhibits at zoos where people could walk through and see sharks swimming around them.

On her bed was two suitcases. She opened one up and found most of her clothes. She assumed a SHIELD agent or two had gone into her home and gathered her things and then shippped them along. Gwen wasn't too fond of the idea of a stranger walking through her home.

Before she could take anything out, there was a knock at her door. She opened it to find Steve.

"Wanna go for a walk?" he asked with a small smile.

Gwen smiled back. "Of course, Captain."

She took his hand as they began to wander through the city.

They came across three training rooms. One was for hand-to-hand combat, the second was for weapons and the third seemed to be for anything supernatural. Gwen wondered if she was a part of the reason that this room was there.

They found a library and a rec room as well as many other curious places. There was a command center, quite like on the helicarrier and there were about a dozen labs. Gwen and Steve didn't dare bother anyone.

When they realized that it was getting late, they headed back to hall in which their rooms resided. They stopped at room six and Gwen turned around to face Steve.

Steve seemed to be thinking about something and opened his mouth to say something, but he decided against it and kissed Gwen instead.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said once they broke apart.

"Goodnight, Captain," answered Gwen.

He smiled at her as a slight blush crept onto his face. He finally turned and went down the hall to his own room.

And Gwen couldn't help but blush as well.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Happy Saturday!**

**MysticRyter: It's okay. I find it funny too.**

**Arrows the Wolf: Haha, now that's stuck in my head! **

**PsYcHoRoAcH: GAAAH you're review made me smile like an idiot. I can't tell you how good I felt after reading that. So, here's a virtual watermelon for the awesome review and also for giving me the longest review I've ever gotten :D**

**Evelyn: Thank you! :)**

**snowyclara: Hahaha I honestly find it funny that you're mad at Clint because I'm the one controlling him. But that's good. I'd rather you be mad at a character than me. Thank you very much :D**

**WillowDamon17: Thank you! I've never head of that show haha. I've only heard of Earth's Mightiest Heroes.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I bet Phil was elated haha. He probably waited until he was alone before he started freaking out. I wish that Gwen and Steve were next door to each other too, but I made it this way for future awkward moments that happen. And I honestly have no idea where Phil is staying haha. I can't imagine him actually sleeping.**

**miller330: Thank you! :)**

**AngelVamp6688: That's sounds great! We'd have a blast there.**

**Itsgoose2u: Ehehe you'll have to wait to find out. And thank you.**

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen**

Just like when Gwen woke up for the first time on the helicarrier, she at first thought that she was back in her house. But then she quickly realized that the bed was far too comfortable and then the events of the previous day came rushing back to her.

Gwen stretched out her legs and arms, rather pleased with the fact the bed was so big that the tips of her fingers and her toes couldn't find the edges. She reluctantly sat up and got out of bed after a moment of peacefully just laying there.

She immediately went into the bathroom and took a shower. She pondered for a moment if the city technically had an unlimited water supply due to it being under water.

After she finished, she dried off with a towel and threw on her robe. Gwen wandered back into the bedroom and turned on the television just to see if it actually worked. To her pleasant surprise, it did work and seemed to pick up every channel in beautiful HD. Simply because she was alone, Gwen put on Adventure Time as she got dressed.

She ignored the SHIELD uniform in her closet and instead got out a sweater and some jeans to wear. She dried her hair with her hair dryer before making her bed and then turned off the television. Gwen went back into the front area of her room and picked up her card from the desk. It turned on from her touch and she set her destination for the cafeteria.

Gwen exited her room and followed the instructions which took her to the door they had come through to find their rooms. She went down the staircase and into the empty common area. The card told her to take a hallway that started a few feet away from the fireplace. She followed it and admired the water damaged paintings on either side of her.

She finally reached sliding doors and found herself in the cafeteria. It seemed most of the team was in there which also included people she assumed were managing the city. There were about two dozen round tables scattered around where people were drinking coffee and eating their breakfast.

"Gwendolyn!" called a voice. She turned her head to see Tony sitting with Pepper, Steve and Bruce. There was an empty seat next to Steve and a tray sitting on the table in front of it filled with food. She smiled as she slid her card into her back pocket and approached the table. Steve stood up and slid the chair out for her. Gwen saw Tony roll his eyes at the gesture. She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Isn't this place great?" asked Tony as he stuffed a large piece of a pancake coated with syrup in his mouth. "They even have shawarma!"

Gwen laughed as she took the syrup bottle sitting in the middle of the table and poured it over the pile of pancakes sitting on a plate on her tray.

"Did I sleep in late?" she asked, looking around at how everyone was almost finished with their meal.

"Well, it is about nine-thirty," answered Bruce who was checking his watch.

"So everyone got up early?"

"It appears so."

"I just want to get back to the lab," said Tony as he downed the rest of his orange juice.

"Are you actually working on finding these gems?" asked Steve.

"I am," replied Bruce. "Tony prefers to either distract me or watch videos of cats."

Pepper rolled her eyes as she took a sip of coffee. "So Gwendolyn, what are you doing today?"

"Well, I don't think I'm much help when it comes to finding these gems, so I won't be in any labs," answered Gwen.

"Oh, come on, buttercup," said Tony.

"I'm serious, Tony! I really don't know what I'm going to do today. By the way, where's Clint and Natasha?"

"With that Morse woman. Barton's been trying to make her swoon."

"Tony," said Pepper in a warning voice and jabbing him in the ribs.

"What! You know it's true!"

"What about Thor?" asked Gwen.

"He took all the pop-tarts and left," said Bruce.

"We think he took them to Loki, added Steve.

"What, so is SHIELD not feeding him?" asked Gwen.

"Don't tell me you want SHIELD to feed him," laughed Tony.

Gwen looked up at him. "He doesn't seem that bad anymore."

Tony choked on something and Steve tried to hide a scoff.

"I'm serious!" exclaimed Gwen. "He refuses to make eye contact with anyone, he looks guilty-"

"He's the god of mischief and lies," stated Bruce. "It could all be an act."

"Gwen, he tried to kill you two months ago," added Steve.

"Thor said he had a change of heart," argued Gwen.

"Thor is also the person who insisted over half his time here that Loki's mind is just diluted," said Tony.

"Does someone with a diluted mind come to warn his enemies of a greater threat?"

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend," recited Pepper quietly.

"So you think Loki is siding with us only because he is against Thanos?" concluded Bruce.

"I just think that Loki needs a chance," finished Gwen. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have things I need to do."

Gwen got up and left her tray there, not even thinking about it. She stormed out of the cafeteria and was only noticed by the people she left behind.

* * *

Steve felt guilty as he watched Gwen stomp out of the cafeteria. He turned back to the others. Bruce was sighing, Tony was rubbing his hands over his face and Pepper was looking down at her coffee mug.

Bruce suddenly laughed. "Leave it to Gwen to feel sympathy for Loki."

"It's gonna get her killed," said Tony.

"That doesn't mean we need to make her angry," argued Steve. "She doesn't need that."

"It's better to make her angry then to let her die."

Steve sighed as he picked up Gwen's tray and threw out everything on top of it. He left the tray with all of the others and left the cafeteria. He assumed Gwen went somewhere to cool off and he wasn't about to follow her just yet. But he had a feeling he knew where she was.

* * *

Gwen found herself in the extra training room for the supernatural people. And she found that she wasn't alone. Her first clue was the ever so slight rumble under her feet as she got close. The moment she opened the door, she found Daisy inside, sitting on the floor with her eyes closed her her brow furrowed in concentration.

"Hi, Daisy," said Gwen, alerting her presence.

She watched as Daisy opened her eyes and smiled up at her. "Hey, Gwendolyn!"

Gwen went and sat down next to her. "What are you doing?"

"Just learning the environment around here," answered Daisy. "I like to know what it's like."

Gwen nodded, though she didn't quite understand.

"However, I could use a drink from the bubbler."

Now Gwen was very confused. "The what?"

"Oh, that's right, you're from Florida," said Daisy as she approached a drinking fountain. She pointed to it. "This is a bubbler. It's what most people call it in southeastern Wisconsin."

"Oh," answered Gwen, feeling stupid now.

Daisy took a drink and sat down in front of Gwen.

"So, can I see your power?"

Gwen was slightly surprised at this. She had never been asked to show her power before.

"Oh, um, sure."

She decided she was going to do a trick that she had been working on with Bruce. With concentration, Gwen summoned the energy from all the light fixtures around them. They all shot forward, leaving darkness behind them. All of the energy clumped together in Gwen's hand and she watched as it formed a sphere and floated just above her palm.

Daisy was wide eyed and her jaw was unhinged.

"That is _so_ cool," she said.

"Thanks," answered Gwen as she let the energy leave her and go back into the lights.

"So." Daisy sat up straighter. "Do you love Steve Rogers?"

Gwen blinked a few times before answering. "What?"

"Well, you two are obviously dating. And I've seen him look at you."

"Most people tend to look at other people."

"No, I'm saying that he looks at you like...like a puppy or something."

Gwen felt her face getting hot. "I never really noticed that."

"It's really cute," continued Daisy. "So, do you love him? It's obvious he loves you."

"Well...I suppose I do."

"Have you told him?"

"...No..."

"You should!"

Out of nowhere, Gwen started laughing. This whole situation was hilarious to her.

"I'm not really that good at this stuff," she admitted.

"You should probably tell him before it's too late."

Gwen couldn't help but agree. But she knew she didn't have the courage. What if Daisy was wrong? What if Steve really didn't love her just yet? They had only been dating for two months. Surely that was too short of a time to fall in love, right? But then again, Gwen never really had a serious relationship before and had never fallen in love. She wasn't even sure what it felt like.

"Gwen?"

She turned around to look at the door and saw Steve leaning against the doorframe. She heard Daisy clear her throat and so she hit her leg in response.

"Hey, Steve. D'you need something?"

"I just wanted to apologize for Stark," he said. "As much as I don't trust Loki, I think it's okay for you to have sympathy for him. Just as long as he doesn't hurt you."

Gwen heard Daisy giggle.

"And also, I wanted to know if you wanted to come to the gym with me."

She saw Steve blush and wondered why in the world he was still so nervous about everything. Maybe Daisy was right.

Gwen bid farewell to Daisy as she took Steve's hand and they walked to the gym where Steve changed into a t-shirt and sweatpants and Gwen sat down in a chair off to the side.

A few times Gwen found herself thinking about the conversation she had with Daisy and she couldn't help but agree.

Gwen loved Steve.

Unfortunately, there was no denying that Gwen was far too scared to say anything.

"What are you thinking about?"

Gwen was pulled out of her thoughts by Steve's question as he threw a punch at a punching bag.

"Oh, just about all of this," she lied easily. "It's hard to believe yesterday I woke up on the helicarrier and now we're in _Atlantis_."

"Very true. But I don't believe you."

Gwen's jaw unhinged slightly. "What?"

"I can tell that's not what you're thinking about."

"Then what am I thinking about?"

Steve shrugged. "Something important."

Gwen looked down at her feet uncomfortably and heard Steve's footsteps come over to her. She watched as he kneeled down in front of her and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Is something bothering you?" he asked seriously.

Gwen shook her head and smiled. "Not at all."

This time, Steve smiled back and leaned up to kiss her. She kissed back immediately, but Steve pulled away to go back to his punching bag.

And Gwen sighed.

Yeah, she was definitely in love with Steve.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**So...Happy Father's Day I guess! It's kind of weird to say this to you guys as I don't know if you're fathers or not...**

**Pati G W Black: I'll try not to cause too much damage!**

**TeamAmWolves: Thank you! I love Daisy too haha.**

**miller330: You'll have to wait a bit then haha.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha, I could see that too. Tony would be a great blogger. And yeah, I'm yelling at her too haha. Thank you!**

**WillowDamon17: Thanks! I love them too.**

**Arrows the Wolf: That's quite alright! I'll miss you haha.**

**AngelVamp6688: I've never been in love so I have _no_ idea haha. But that's alright 'cause I'm only sixteen. (though I had a strange experience where someone thought I was dating them for months when I wasn't)**

**O. O TT. TT LOLz: Is that a heart...?**

**Itsgoose2u: You got it haha.**

**Vanillastar: Don't worry, they will!**

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**

It was hard to tell what time it was when Gwen woke up the next day. She turned her head on her pillow to look at the alarm clock on her nightstand. The red lights flashed five in the morning. Groaning, Gwen turned over and shut her eyes tightly together.

Suddenly, there was some sort of knock that came from the balcony. Slightly freaked out, Gwen shot up out of her bed, her heart racing. Her eyes scanned the balcony, but she saw nothing there. She wondered if it had been her imagination or maybe had just been some sort of fish.

Her heart jumped again when a loud beeping noise started blaring from the study. Gwen quickly threw the covers off to investigate. She approached the desk and saw that her card was flashing and that the noise was coming from it. She picked it up, squinting her eyes as she adjusted to the light. There was some sort of pop-up on the screen which read:

_Everyone must report to the briefing room immediately._

Gwen was tempted to ignore it and just go back to sleep, but she instead got dressed and slipped her card into her pocket before leaving her room. All of the others were out in the hall, some of them looking like they hadn't even realized their hair was a mess. Gwen waited at her door until Steve came and the two held hands as they walked to their destination.

"What's going on?" she asked him.

"Guess we'll find out," he answered.

When they entered the briefing room, Gwen saw that the large monitor now had a 3-D map up on the screen. However, Gwen wasn't quite sure where the map was showing. She sat down at the table with Steve and saw that all of the gods were already there and looked ready for battle. They were also looking at the table curiously. Gwen looked at it then, too, and saw that the table was basically a giant screen. She put her hand on it and was able to move pictures around. It sort of reminded her of the Hunger Games control center.

Once everyone had entered, including Loki who was being watched closely by guards despite the fact Thor was always close to him, Fury entered with Phil and they stood at the front of the room. Jane, Erik, Bruce and Stephen all went to the front with them, looking very tired.

"Alright everyone, we've found one," announced Fury.

"A gem?" asked Natasha.

Fury nodded and turned towards the others. "If you please."

They all stood up straight, obviously being the ones to find it. Bruce pressed a few things on the main monitor and then small maps appeared at each seat. Gwen looked close at it zoomed in on one location. A landmark rose out of each map and Gwen saw it was some type of mountain.

"We've traced some gamma readings and some..._magic_ readings coming from a specific mountain," said Bruce. "Mount Everest."

A couple peope began to look excited.

"Are you sure a gem is here?" asked Steve.

"If there is not a gem, then there is something odd within Mount Everest," answered Stephen.

Gwen looked back at the hologram of the mountain. She had never climbed a mountain before. But knowing SHIELD, they were probably just going to fly to the top.

"Wait," said Tony slowly, putting his hands up, "you said 'within Mount Everest.' Are you saying-"

"The gem is inside the mountain," said Erik. He pushed a finger on the main monitor at the top of the mountain, but just below the surface. A blue dot flashed on the holograms in that spot.

"We believe it is approximately there," explained Stephen.

"So what are we waiting for?" asked Barbara. "Let's go get it."

"But we must be careful," said Thor. "I believe there will be traps in order to keep us from the gem."

"Alright," said Fury nodding, "let's suit up."

* * *

In twenty minutes, Gwen found herself waiting in the common area, dressed in her uniform with her weapons in their holsters. She also held a warm coat in her arms so that when they got to the mountain, she wouldn't freeze to death.

Fury had ordered her and everyone but Jane, Darcy, Pepper, Phil, Erik and Loki to go along. It seemed Fury didn't trust Loki enough to send him on a mission with the rest of them yet. Thor had protested, but Loki had agreed with Fury and was led back to his room. Hank had decided to stay back as he was apparently perfecting something and he didn't want to go into danger without it.

Tony and Rhodey were going to fly in their suits while the rest of them were in a quinjet. Gwen was curious to see how they could fit everyone in there.

In the common area already was Clint, Natasha and Barbara. The three of them were sort of like some type of golden trio, but Gwen couldn't help but notice Natasha's expression looked forced as though she really wasn't finding a joke Barbara was telling to be funny. Then there was Luke who was being talked to by Stephen and certainly didn't look very interested in the conversation.

Gwen jumped slightly as she felt fingers intertwine with hers and turned to see Steve dressed in his Captain America uniform, his shield on his back. His mask was off of his head and he smiled down at Gwen.

"I had always thought about climbing Mount Everest," he said. "Trust me, I would've died if I tried before the serum."

Gwen laughed at his random joke and assumed he had said it because he could sense her nerves. She was only worried because they would be traveling into something unknown. They could easily die from a trap placed to keep the gem away from civilization.

"Then this must be slightly a dream come true," said Gwen. Steve smiled bigger and he kissed her forehead gently.

"I feel as though we are traveling to Jotunheim!" exclaimed the voice of Volstagg. Gwen and Steve turned to see the Asgardians coming into the common area, followed by Daisy and Bruce who were in conversation.

"Yes, well our last trip there wasn't that fun," said Fandral who put a hand on his chest absentmindedly.

"At least you were not touched by a Frost Giant."

"At least you were not _banished_," added Thor.

It wasn't long before they were joined by Fury.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the helicarrier has landed back next to the city. We will be boarding two quinjets to get there."

Well that answered Gwen's question.

"The Asgardians will go on one as well as Doctor Banner and Doctor Strange along with myself. With the help of Stark and Rhodes, we will find an entrance to the mountain. The rest of you will be on the other quinjet. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir," recited all of the agents while the others nodded. Fury led them up the large marble staircase and through the doors that led them to the helicarrier. On top were several quinjets like always, but two were specifically put nearby the bridge. Fury walked onto one and was followed by the others he ordered to come with him. Gwen went onto the other quinjet with the others.

She took a seat and Daisy sat down next to her. Clint, Barbara and Natasha sat on the other side while Steve and Luke remained standing.

"Have you ever been to Tibet before?" asked Daisy.

Gwen shook her head. "I haven't been outside of North America once in my life."

"Me neither."

The ride to Mount Everest was incredibly unexciting. Gwen talked with Daisy the whole time, happy to have made a new friend. She stole a few glances at Clint, though, and saw him almost admiring Barbara. Gwen smirked as she realized that the archer had a crush.

Gwen saw that Steve had talked to Luke the whole time. She could hear a few phrases and concluded they were talking about the super-soldier serum. She heard enough to make her realize that they had tried the same thing on Luke, but there was obviously a different effect.

They were alerted of their arrival in Tibet by their earpieces. Gwen could feel the quinjet ascending as if they were going up the mountain. She was very curious how they were actually going to get in.

Then there was suddenly an explosion.

Gwen and the others jumped out of their seats to look out the front. They were looking at the top of the mountain, except there was now a hole in it where Gwen assumed the other quinjet had shot a rocket at it. But once the smoke cleared away, she could see steel doors that had been hidden underneath the rock. They slid open revealing a cave.

"You're joking," said Barbara, a look of shock on her face. "That's been there all this time?"

"We've found the entrance," came Fury's voice. "You are to all go through and find the gem."

They all watched as the other quinjet turned around and the back most likely opened and the others climbed out. Once the quinjet moved, the one Gwen was in turned around and the back opened. Gwen threw on her coat and the others that brought one did the same. She followed Steve, his mask now on, who was the first out and saw that Fury was not among the others. She figured he stayed on his quinjet.

"Do you feel that?" asked Thor to his god friends.

"Yes," answered Sif. "It is here."

The others nodded and everyone that wasn't of Asgard looked around in confusion.

"We should keep moving," said Steve.

They all nodded in agreement. Gwen slid a flashlight off her belt and turned it on as there was no light in the cave except for the entrance. All of those with flashlights did the same. The cave became became narrow as they continued on, all light except the illumination of the flashlights gone. Gwen noticed the way the Asgardians walked was different than the others. They held their weapons at the ready as though something was going to jump out at them at any moment.

Gwen was near the back of the group which was led by Steve. She walked next to Daisy who seemed very comfortable being surrounded by earth. It sort of reminded Gwen of earthbenders from _Avatar: The Last Airbender_.

The end of the cave approached as they stepped down into a circular area. The walls were still made of rock, but there were now torches that showed the air around them. And it showed three separate tunnels.

"What do we do now?" asked Clint.

"We'll have to split up," said Steve.

Steve began putting people into groups, but Gwen wasn't listening. She could hear something. She wasn't sure what it was, but it was telling her to go down the middle tunnel. Her legs began taking her in that direction. She couldn't even hear Steve calling her name and for her to stop. Gwen just kept walking.

Something was down there. And Gwen was going to find out what.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Because this chapter is rather short, I will post the next one today. I just couldn't do much else with it, but I couldn't combine it with anything else.**

**snowyclara: Haha, it is so freakin' amazing! And Daisy _is_ awesome. I never actually meant for that to happen haha.**

**xxjempa1112luvSPNxx: GAH I LOVE YOU I can't tell you how good I felt after reading your review. Thank you so so so so much!**

**O. O TT. TT LOLz: Haha, I got the idea. I had a feeling it was probably the website. **

**WillowDamon17: I love making references haha.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Oh man, I should've included something like that after the banished line. I'll have to remember that haha. And you're welcome!**

**KiyUzumaki: Thank you! :)**

**StarViky: Glad to hear, thanks! And you're welcome!**

**Itsgoose2u: Hehe I couldn't help myself with that line.**

**AngelVamp6688: Let me tell ya, it's weird haha. The guy and I have been friends for like ten years and I this out the last week of school. He never even asked me out or talked to me outside of the one class we had together! My friend Jacob now laughs at me all the time because of it. And thanks!**

**Arrows the Wolf: Hallelujah! Hint: Gwen's gonna die. No, I'm joking. There's more installments, she can't die. **

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen**

It took Steve yanking on her arm to make Gwen stop. She finally turned to him and he looked slightly worried. Behind him was Natasha, Luke and Thor.

"It's this way," said Gwen without thinking about it.

"Are you sure?" asked Steve.

Gwen nodded. "Positive. I can feel the energy."

She turned around and it seemed Steve was actually going to let her lead. The tunnel was rather long, but it was completely straight. They all walked incredibly cautiously, unsure if there were any traps along the way.

Many times they passed entrances to other corridors, but Gwen continued in one direction. She knew they were getting close. She could almost taste it.

The energy coming from the gem was getting more and more intense the further they walked. It was surprising to her that no one else could feel it. It was like a heart thumping throughout her body and taking control of her. It told her where she needed to go.

And so she went there.

* * *

Clint and Barbara walked close to each other as they walked down the cave Steve indicated them to go through. They were with Daisy who almost looked like a third wheel.

"So what's up with Powers?" asked Barbara. "How come she knows where it is?"

"Y'see, Gwendolyn has this...shield in her head," explained Clint. He wasn't quite sure how to explain it as he was no Bruce Banner.

"A shield..._okay_."

"And she can, like, do things with energy."

"Wow, that told me so much."

Barbara smirked over at Clint who was slightly blushing at his lack of knowledge. He hated that his face was hot and wanted nothing but for it to go away. The worst part was, Barbara knew she could do that to him, so she teased him just to see a reaction.

"So," said Barbara, "how's Natasha been doing? She seems a bit...different."

Clint shook his head. "I don't know. She just recently started acting weird."

"D'you think it's because of me?"

"No, Bobbi." Clint put a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "It's not because of you."

"Then what is it?"

"I don't know."

* * *

Loki sat undeniably bored in his room. He laid on his bed and simply stared at the ceiling as he had absolutely nothing to do. He wasn't allowed outside of his room and there were guards standing there all hours of the day to make sure he couldn't escape. Loki scoffed as he thought about it. Hadn't he shown he was trustworthy yet?

Then there were those stupid bracelets they put on him. He wasn't sure who made them, but he couldn't use any of his magic with them on. And he hated it. He at least wanted a book to read. But then again, books about magic to mortals were fictional while to him they were informative.

He sighed and closed his eyes. At least he had Thor visiting him occasionally. He would have preferred to have someone else come and give him food seeing as all Thor wanted was these weird tarts of pop. But at least he had some sort of company. Even if Thor was still a big oaf, just a less arrogant one.

Maybe once all of this was over, he could go back to Asgard and spend the rest of his time in the library. That didn't sound like such a bad idea. He could make himself invisible and read all day. Actually, this sounded nice.

But unfortunately, Loki had something to do first. Even though his pride contradicted with his need to apologize to a certain blonde, he was still going to do it.

But first he had to figure out how to get out of his room.

* * *

Gwen and her group finally made it to the end of the tunnel which seemed to be the entrance to another circular room.

And there it was.

An orange gem, quite like the two Fury had showed them, was sitting on a think stand made out of rock, almost like a pedestal. It sat in the center of the chamber, reflecting the flames of the torches that lined the walls.

"It is the Time gem," stated Thor, getting everyone's attention. "It allows the travel of time. It can also be used against enemies to make them stuck in different times."

"At least we got it first, then," said Steve. "Okay, everyone. We found the gem. Head back to the entrance, we'll meet you there."

Steve started moving forward to grab it, but Gwen stopped him. "Let me do it."

After a moment of debate in his head, Steve nodded. Gwen smiled with gratitude and turned back to the gem. With very slow and careful steps, she moved forward and approached the gem. The rock stand it sat on made it so that the gem was resting at the height of her stomach.

It was so far so good as Gwen stood next to the gem. She licked her lips as she reached out her hand and touched the orange rock. She imagined it might burn her as it seemed there were no traps so far or maybe freeze her. But instead, the gem felt cool and bearable to touch. She let out a breath of relief and picked up the gem.

And that's when the rumbling started.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Let me just say, I'm getting so much inspiration for two other fics I'm writing and it is actually KILLING ME. The first one is a Loki/OC story that takes place during Thor and the other is a Loki/OC/Steve story that takes place during the Avengers and I'm having SO many Loki feels while I write them. I need to stop. Anyway...**

**xxjempa1113luvSPNxx: Haha, yeah, they were pop tarts. And thank you!**

**WillowDamon17: That's what I thought of too, haha! Thank you!**

**MysticRyter: That is actually a great idea, but it unfortunately doesn't fit into the plot D:**

**Jimmy 144: Thank you! :)**

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen**

"What's happening?" asked Natasha as snow began falling around them.

"What in the world is going on in there?" asked Fury's voice.

"The mountain's collapsing!" exclaimed Daisy's voice.

"Can't you stop it?"

"I work with earthquakes! This isn't an earthquake!"

"Alright everyone, get your asses out of there right now!"

Gwen felt someone tug on her arm and then began to move. Steve was trying his best to pull her along, but it became hard while rocks and chunks of snow and ice were falling down around them. She felt him reluctantly let go as he used his shield to deflect some things coming at them.

Gwen saw that she was last out of everyone. Thor had flown off with Mjolnir in some sort of attempt to stop the mountain, though Gwen knew even a god couldn't stop what was happening. Everyone she was with was ahead of her as Gwen was trying her best to keep a grip on the Time gem.

They reached the end of the tunnel and went into the circular area which brought them back to the original cave. Gwen found it slightly hard to run while wearing the coat she was and could tell that if she couldn't speed up, she'd be crushed. She tripped for a slight second and felt her ankle hurt. It wasn't damaged badly, but it hurt nonetheless.

Just as they were finally reaching the entrance and she saw Steve and Natasha leap onto a quinjet, Gwen felt everything crumble down around her. She wasn't quite sure what happened as silence blanketed over the mountain. She could feel her heart still racing and she was breathing heavily. Slowly, she lifted up her head, her blonde curls a tangled mess on her head like an overused mop. There was chunks of rock and ice around her, but they weren't on top of her. She then looked up above her and saw that Luke was over her, holding up the rocks that should've killed her.

It seemed that because of his steel-like skin, everything crumbling down on top of him didn't hurt him. He grunted as he lifted it all up and tried to make an opening for them to get out.

"Thank you," breathed Gwen.

"Don't mention it," answered Luke. He managed to make a hole in the rocks and pulled Gwen through it. She heard the sound of a quinjet as as surfaced and was pulled from Luke and into the aircraft.

"Thank God," she heard Steve say as she felt his muscular arms wrap around her in an embrace. It was slightly awkward as they sat on the floor of the quinjet, but Gwen wasn't complaining.

"I'm so sorry," Steve muttered as he planted a kiss on her head and stroked her hair. "I should've made you go before me."

"I'm alive, aren't I?" asked Gwen with a laugh.

Steve leaned back to look at her. His mask was off like before they left and his expression mirrored that of how he looked when she woke up after her confrontation with Loki. Gwen looked down at her hand and saw that she still held the gem.

Steve signed. "You were willing to die for that?"

"You would too."

She saw a small smirk on his face as he took the gem and handed it to someone else. Gwen didn't pay attention to who it was as she was suddenly lifted off of her feet.

"Easy there, buttercup," said Tony. Gwen was surprised that Tony was aboard the quinjet. She allowed him to bring her to a seat and put her down as she realized she was shaking from a mix of adrenaline, the idea of being crushed to death, holding onto the gem and realizing she was alive.

"A few cuts, but you'll live," said Tony as he pinched her cheek. She rolled her eyes at him as he left her and Steve came and kneeled down in front of her.

"Are you okay, then?" he asked.

"I'm fine, Steve."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

Steve smiled as he stood up, pushed some of her curls out of her face and behind her ear and crushed his lips to hers. Her heart pounded as butterflies tickled her insides. He pulled back with a smile and went to talk with Tony and Luke who it seemed got on the quinjet as well.

Gwen leaned her head back, a smile still on her lips. She pulled her head forward again and looked to the right where a giggling noise was coming from. There sat Daisy who was smiling at her.

"You two are far too adorable," she said. "I must live a sad life if I'm shipping people together in real life."

Gwen flushed and laughed along.

* * *

When they arrived back on the helicarrier, Stephen took the gem and headed back to the labs without Bruce. Several of the other smart people went with him.

Steve helped Gwen out of the quinjet as she realized her ankle hurt. She could tell it wasn't even sprained, but was just sore and hurting. But Steve didn't take this for an answer and personally helped her to the medical ward in Atlantis. She had managed to convince him that she was capable of a least walking as he suggested he could carry her if need be.

Band-aids were applied and Gwen resisted the temptation to ask for childish band-aids like she would at a normal doctor's office. She figured that since this was SHIELD, it would be highly inappropriate.

Gwen insisted she change out of her uniform and so Steve walked with her to her room. She reminded him he was still dressed like the American flag, so he left her there so he could change as well.

She changed into a sweater and jeans and found that Steve was already at her door by the time she was done. He forced her to go with him to the cafeteria as they realized they missed breakfast and lunch.

"Hey, look who decided to show up!"

Gwen sat down after Steve pulled out her chair at a table with Tony, who had spoken, Bruce, Pepper and now Daisy and Rhodey.

"I'll go get you food," said Steve, giving her a kiss on the head.

"No, I can get it-"

"If you get up I'm pushing you back down and strapping you to this chair."

Gwen sighed in defeat as Steve left the table. She scowled at Pepper who was trying to hide a laugh.

"Why does he always get like that right after you almost die?" asked Tony.

"He felt guilty," said Gwen with a shrug.

"He feels guilty about everything."

"I think it's cute," said Daisy.

"Agreed," added Pepper.

Bruce chuckled as he looked at a tablet and scrolled down win his finger.

"What are you looking at?" asked Gwen.

"Strange is sending me his readings on the gem," answered Bruce.

"What did he find?" asked Daisy.

"Same thing as the others. It's magical and powerful. If used wrong it could be deadly."

Steve came back with one tray of food. He set it down in front of Gwen who began to eat, but noticed Steve had sat down without anything.

"Aren't you going to eat?" she asked.

"I'll be fine," he answered.

"No, you need food too."

"Gwen, I'm fine."

"Steve..."

"There isn't any food left," said Rhodey. "You've got the last bit."

"What?"

"The Asgardians need more food than us. They don't seem to realize it. Apparently SHIELD has to get food shipped in."

"I see. Why don't you eat some of mine?"

"No, it's yours," argued Steve.

"But you haven't eaten."

"Just eat the food, Gwen."

Gwen huffed as she ate some food, realizing that Steve was going to be stubborn.

"Listen to them two," laughed Tony. "They fight like an old married couple."

Both Gwen and Steve blushed at this, causing the others to laugh more.

Once Gwen was done, Steve escorted her back to her room. Before she took out her key card, she looked at Steve and kissed him. She lifted her arms and linked them around his neck while his went around her waist.

"I'm still sorry," he said.

"For what?" asked Gwen.

"For running ahead. I guess I forgot I can run faster than everyone else."

"Steve, if you don't let this go, I'll have to hurt you."

He laughed as he kissed her again. "I'd like to see you try."

Before she could retort, his lips were on hers yet again. Gwen let her fingers run through his hair as the two tried to get as close as possible to each other. Gwen's heart was racing faster than she could handle.

"Eww, guys. Seriously."

Gwen and Steve broke apart and jumped away from each other at the sound of Tony's voice. He was walking with Bruce who was suppressing a smile.

Gwen could feel heat rushing to her cheeks as Tony winked at her. He then continued on after giving Steve a pat on the shoulder.

"Be careful there, Rogers," he said. "I might have to rip your tongue out."

Steve's face went even more red as Bruce gave them each an apologetic smile and followed Tony.

"Of all people..." Steve muttered under his breath.

Gwen gave a light tug on his hand and he turned back to her, the red already disappearing.

"You should probably go, just in case Tony comes back," she suggested with a smile.

"Good idea."

Steve planted one more kiss on her forehead before walking off. Still smiling, Gwen opened her door and went inside, unable to stop the girlish giggle that escaped her lips.

* * *

It had been hard, but Thanos had managed to arrive on earth without disrupting anything and therefore his arrival went unnoticed. He knew where a gem was and he wasn't going to wait to get it.

Thanos arrived in the land of Tibet and frowned when he realized something as looked over the vast landscape.

The mountain was destroyed.

The gem was gone.

Out of his frustration, Thanos lifted the Gauntlet on his arm and shot a ray of light at the ground. It wasn't satisfying, but he liked the sound of the explosion.

And so that meant he had to get to to the next gem as fast as possible. Because someone was racing him for them.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**So my mom is making me practice driving today because my road test is next month BUT I HATE DRIVING. Anyway...**

**Arrows the Wolf: Avengers will always win YEAH**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: FEEEEELS oh and I didn't copy you or anything. We just happened to both make Steve a butthead at the same time haha.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Steve really is a sweetheart...sometimes...*uncomfortable laugh***

**Itsgoose2u: Thank you! She is always getting hurt haha.**

**TeamAmWolves: Haha thanks! :)**

**WillowDamon17: They are cute! And Thanos is silly haha.**

**snowyclara: Wow! Hahaha. I thought of Indiana Jones too. I was like, what am I doing, but I did it anyway. Don't worry, I love Daisy too much to kill her. I guarantee she will live forever (or at least until she's old). Haha Thanos is very picky about his explosions. And I love my new name hah!And don't worry, it was only the top of the mountain, but it is noticable. **

**StarViky: He will! In this chapter!**

**AngelVamp6688: Thanks! I honestly can't remember what I did with the next gem. I mean, I can't remember what order I put it all in haha.**

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen**

The next couple of days were spent in the city. Gwen was having to find different ways to entertain herself when boredom struck.

She had visited the library that was in Atlantis, even though there were barely any books as they had all suffered water damage, the recreation room, she practiced fighting with Steve, who let Gwen win each time, got teased by Tony and visited the labs. Yet she still found herself sighing from time to time. It wasn't that Atlantis was boring, it was just the wait. She wanted them to find the next gem as then they'd be one step closer to defeating Thanos. Fury had reminded them that Thanos had the Infinity Gauntlet and that he hadn't attacked yet which only made Gwen feel even more uneasy.

So to get rid of that feeling, Gwen found herself back in the training room for supernatural things. Daisy was not in there this time, but Gwen didn't mind. She began playing with the energy from the lights again, but this time trying to form different shapes with it instead of a sphere. She was just adding the the vertices of a cube when a voice interrupted her.

"That is very impressive."

In a flash, Gwen lost concentration and the energy went back in the lights. She turned around to see none other than Loki himself.

She automatically tensed up. "How did you-"

"Get out of my room?" he finished, putting his hands behind his back. "I am a master of magic. I can find my way around things. Including those infernal bracelets that limited my magic."

"But don't they realize you're gone?"

"I left a - what do you call it? - hologram in my place."

"So you just walked out?"

"No, I teleported."

There was an uncomfortable silence before Loki spoke again.

"I wanted to...apologize."

Gwen raised her eyebrows. "Apologize?"

"For trying to kill you."

She noticed that Loki wouldn't even look her in the eye. From what she knew, if he was lying, he wouldn't have a problem looking her in the eye.

"I forgive you."

Loki's head snapped up very fast. "What?"

"I forgive you," Gwen repeated. "What, did you expect you'd have to beg?"

"I pictured you being more stubborn."

Gwen smirked. "It took a lot for you to say this. I can tell." She looked over to a set of empty chairs and took a chance. "Did you want to sit down?"

Loki looked from her to the chairs and then back to her. Gwen realized he still felt uncomfortable so she sat down first. He seemed to realize he had no choice and sat down next to her, staring at his feet awkwardly. It was actually kind of funny to see him like this.

"Do you miss your father?" she asked, not caring that Odin wasn't his real father.

"I suppose," he said quietly.

"It's okay to miss him. I miss _my_ dad. I miss the way he'd always make a joke, even in the most serious situations."

Loki remained quiet as though unsure of what to say.

"At least you still have your mom," continued Gwen. "I've heard some pretty good things about her from Thor."

"She's a wonderful woman."

At the mention of "a wonderful woman," Gwen let curiosity get the best of her and she spoke without thinking.

"Were you dating anyone in Asgard?" she asked. She suddenly blushed as she realized what she said.

"Dating?" repeated Loki with a frown.

"I suppose you probably court there, don't you?"

Loki picked at his nails awkwardly. "We do. But no. I was not courting a woman. I doubt anyone would want me to."

Gwen furrowed her brow. "Why?"

Loki scoffed. "Who would want to to be courted by the younger prince of Asgard? Who would want to be courted by the prince who spends more time with his books than he does with people?"

"Were you interested in someone?" Gwen didn't realize how personal of a question this was until it had been asked and Loki had scoffed. But then he remained quiet until he surprisingly answered.

"There is a woman named Sigyn," he said. "She is from Vanaheim."

Gwen had no knowledge of Norse Mythology except for what she had learned from Thor and Loki, so she simply nodded.

"She used to visit with her parents. They would always put her with Thor and I. She hated all the tricks I played on her."

"But you still liked her?"

"I suppose I did it for her attention."

"Then what?"

Loki looked up at Gwen with a furrowed brow. "What?"

"Did you ever tell her?"

"Why would I?"

"Because if you don't make a movie you'll miss your chance."

Loki laughed. "Why should I take advice from a mere human?"

"Because it worked for that mere human."

But before Loki could respond, the door to the training room opened and Gwen's head shot up. She nearly immediately recognized Steve.

"Hey, Gwen, I thought you'd-"

He seemed to stop as he saw Loki. His expression changed dramatically. Steve looked as though he was about to rip Loki's throat out. The soldier stepped forward, but Gwen had anticipated it and shot up to block him.

"Steve!" she shouted. "Don't do something you'll regret!"

"I won't regret killing him," answered Steve. She watched his eyes move back to where Loki had been and she saw how confused Steve now looked. Gwen turned around and saw that Loki had disappeared. She figured it was for the best.

"How the hell did he get out of his room?" he asked. Gwen had never seen him so angry.

"Steve, just calm down," she pleaded.

"Did he hurt you?"

"What? No! I told you, he's changed!"

She watched as Steve's anger became directed at her.

"Are you insane? Have you lost your mind, Gwen? I can only defend you so far! You were in a room alone with a psychotic god! What if he used that to his advantage!"

Now it was Gwen's turn to become angry. "Are you implying that I can't defend myself?"

In that moment, Gwen saw many different emotions show on Steve's face. At first he looked guilty and full of regret. Then he suddenly looked as though he got an idea. Then the anger came back, though it looked slightly forced.

"I'm saying that I'm not always around here to protect you," he said. Gwen didn't notice him flinch at his own words.

"I can protect myself, Steve! I don't need you as a bodyguard."

Steve nodded. "Fine then. If you can defend yourself, then go ahead. But don't come crying to me when Loki hurts you."

He hesitated for a moment before turning on his heel and leaving the training room.

Gwen could feel her anger leaving and could feel it being replaced with something she didn't know. All she knew was that tears were no flowing freely and it was taking every bit of strength in her body to prevent sobs. She hated the way she felt at that moment. She hated feeling weak. And so Gwen left the training room and walked as fast as she could to her room.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Hello everyone!**

**It's really hot outside and my dogs just want to lay in the sun. I'm just like NOPE NOPE NOPE**

**By the way, has anyone else heard of the rumor that the Avengers will be rereleased in August as a three hour director's cut? Does anyone know if this is true? Because I'm dying here.**

**O. O TT. TT LOLz: Unfortunately, no. I considered it, but it just didn't work out right haha.**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Hahaha I swear our stories are like parallel universes. And good luck on your test too!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I know, I feel so bad for Gwen haha. Don't worry, Tony will be there :)**

**WillowDamon17: I saw no one but Loki doing so haha.**

**Brit. Knee: Haha thanks! I love the use of caps lock haha. **

**MysticRyter: He can be a butthead. At least he can't hulk out.**

**Vanillastar: He does need a friend! I hope he doesn't mess it up either.**

**DarkDemon01: Thank you! :D**

**Itsgoose2u: Thanks, I'm glad I'm not the only person who hates driving haha.**

**DarkRulerKida: Haha, I hope this can satisfy you until tomorrow.**

**LanaKrios: Thanks! I hope he doesn't either, I love him too much.**

**pocahunta: Thanks so much! Hopefully you enjoy all of the coming installments.**

**snowyclara: Hahahaha I acutally laughed out loud at the mediocre dunce. I think that Thanos is slighly a diva. But also think he just doesn't care who he kills, so he's more like a "yolo" person. And thanks for the peace out hahaha.**

**Arrows the Wolf: This will go down in history as the best review ever omg.**

**AngelVamp6688: I'm glad that made you smile haha. I just hate driving because I can't daydream haha.**

**Starviky: I'll make sure to get some more in there!**

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

As Gwen opened the doors that led to the hall which held the living quarters, she didn't even notice Tony who she smacked right into.

"Whoa there, buttercup. Watch where you're-"

He stopped as he saw her face.

"Oh, Gwendolyn, come here."

Gwen felt fortunate to be friends with Tony in the moment as he showed her his better side. He wrapped her in his arms and Gwen let her tears loose.

"If Rogers did this to you, I'm going to kick his ass," said Tony.

Gwen couldn't help but give a laugh at his protective attitude. He finally pulled back and brought her down the hall and into his room.

"Where's Pepper?" Gwen asked as she sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"With Banner," answered Tony. "She sent me to get her sweater."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" She hadn't even noticed the sweater in Tony's hand.

"It's fine. You're more important right now."

Tony pushed Gwen towards the bed where she sat down. He took a seat next to her.

"Care to tell me what happened?"

After sniffing once, Gwen explained exactly what happened. She left out the main chunk of the conversation she had with Loki, knowing this wasn't Tony's business.

Once she finished, Tony got up.

"Where are you going?" Gwen asked.

"To kick his ass," Tony answered innocently with a shrug.

"No, you're not. I can handle this."

"Look at yourself, Gwen. I think it'll be easier if I kick his ass."

"_Tony._"

"Fine! I'll just talk to him."

"I can do that!"

"What, are you going to stop me?"

Gwen sighed as she stared at Tony. Realizing that there was no stopping him, she nodded.

"Fine," she said. "Just, don't do anything stupid."

* * *

"What d'you think you're doing Rogers?"

Tony entered the gym in Atlantis to find Steve once again hitting a punching bag.

"What are you talking about?" asked Steve, turning to look at Tony.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. I found Gwendolyn alone and crying. She told me exactly what happened."

"So then she mentioned Loki?"

"Yeah, she did."

"Doesn't it bother you?"

"I have to admit, I'm pretty pissed off he got out of his room, but that's not Gwendolyn's fault. You know she's too kind for her own good."

Steve gave a low chuckle. "I know. That's exactly why I did what I did."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Fury's splitting us up."

Tony paused for a moment. "What does that mean?"

"I found a folder with some documents in. He's splitting us all into three groups. I'm the leader of Alpha, you're the leader of Beta and Banner's the leader of Charlie. Gwen's in Beta."

"Why?"

"Fury doesn't like the way the last mission went."

"We survived and got the gem, what more could we do?"

"He thinks that if we all always go, we might end up all dying."

"So, what does her being kind have to do with any of this?"

"I spoke with Fury and told him it was stupid. We all should work as a team. But he refuses to change anything. This means when another gem is found, he'll send one team and the others stay here. I need to make sure Gwen can be without me."

"She doesn't depend on you, Rogers."

"Well, at least I depend on her more than I probably should."

There was silence as Tony made a decision

"Okay, here's what's going to happen." When Tony spoke now, he sounded less protective. He could tell Steve liked this change of attitude. "You're going to apologize to Gwenie and I'll make Fury change his mind."

"I don't know, Fury's being stubborn."

"Trust me, Cap. I know what to do."

Tony turned to leave, but Steve spoke and stopped him.

"Hey Stark, before you go, can I ask you a question?"

* * *

Natasha found herself in the weapons training room. She pointed her handgun at target in front of her and shot. The bullet hit the target in the head. Sighing, she fired again, achieving the same results. She figured this was the best way to deal with the anger that was building up inside of her like a balloon.

"Hey, Nat."

Natasha's heart dropped at the voice. She saw out of the corner of her eye Barbara picking up a gun and aiming at her own target.

"Hi, Bobbi," answered Natasha politely.

"I didn't realize how much I missed all of this excitement." Barbara shot and hit the target in the head.

"You should feel lucky that you got away."

Natasha shot and hit the head again.

"Do you want to leave?"

"There are times where I'd prefer not to run Fury's errands."

Barbara laughed. "That was what got me into that whole AIM mess."

"But you got rescued."

"Yeah, by Clint."

There was an awkward silence between the two women as they continued to fire at their targets.

"Do you...like Clint?" asked Barbara, clearly uncomfortable.

Natasha set her gun down on the table in front of her. She turned her body towards Barbara.

"I owed him a debt," she said, "but not anymore. That was all it was."

Natasha turned and left Barbara behind her. She couldn't help but feel anger towards her friend. How could she just turn back up after breaking Clint's heart by leaving? And how could she come back, just as Natasha was just realizing what she felt for Clint?

Feeling frustrated, she stomped through the halls, hoping that no one tried to talk to her for they'd regret it.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**My mom and I are building legos today because we do what we want.**

**Also, I think I might post the first chapter of my Loki/OC Thor fic today. I'm not sure though. Anyway...**

**Arrows the Wolf: I hope you're not mad after this chapter!**

**Brit. Knee: Haha, I'm rooting for Natasha too.**

**MysticRyter: I KNOW IT'S LIKE AN OVERLOAD OF CUTENESS**

**WillowDamon17: Tony's so great :)**

**Pati G W Black: Then I'm a mass murderer D:**

**Itsgoose2u: Thanks! I agree, I think Tony can be very soft. It's just hard to bring it out.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Muahaha you won't find out what he asks until the end of this installment because I'm a horrible person. Don't worry, Tony will talk with Fury.**

**AngelVamp6688: I think the blu-ray and stuff actually comes out in September and that's part of the rumor that they're putting it in theaters in August to promote for it and make more money. But it would be THREE HOURS of awesomeness.**

**snowyclara: Tony's badass no matter what he does haha. I'm sorry, but you won't know just yet! I'll prepare for the tantrum.**

**torixx3: Yay! Welcome to the fandom! And thank you! Don't worry, I was being chased by the world's biggest wasp yesterday. I was certain I was going to die.**

**Slushies And Red Vines: Thank you so much! I'm glad you think this way!**

**dragonrain618: That's alright! I'm glad you're excited for the love triangle! Sometimes I feel bad about the way I treat Natasha...**

* * *

**Chapter Nineteen**

Before Tony left, he told Gwen to go back to her room. She was fustrated that he was so insistant on talking with Steve as she knew she was perfectly capable of doing it herself. She just needed to calm down and knew that Steve needed to cool off as well. When her parents had been alive and they fought, she had always seen them go separate ways until they were no longer in the heat of the moment and therefore wouldn't say or do anything they'd regret.

But Tony Stark was a stubborn man.

So Gwen followed what he said and went back to her room. She was nervous about the situation, not wanting to fight with Steve. Maybe she'd talk to him and tell him she loved him at last. Only if Gwen wasn't such a coward.

She was still angry, though, that no one believed her. She knew Loki was different. Anyone with eyes, or in Fury's case _an eye_, could see that. It was as obvious as the color of the sky.

However, Gwen couldn't help but feel flattered at the way Steve reacted. Now that she thought about it, it was very sweet. He had been willing to take on Loki simply because he cared so much for Gwen. She just wished that it had been someone other than Loki like Thanos, someone who wasn't trying to make up for the wrong they did.

Gwen took a shower once she got back to her room and quickly dried her hair.

Just as Gwen finished buttoning her top, there was a knock at her door. Figuring it was Tony, she approached and opened it.

Except it was Steve.

"Oh," she said quietly.

It was actually sort of amusing to see Steve looking awkwardly at his feet looking very ashamed. But Gwen was feeling stubborn now, so she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm sorry," he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"For what?"

"For overreacting and treating you the way I did."

"And why should I forgive you?"

"Becauseiloveyou!"

It took Gwen a couple of seconds to realize what he said as he spoke so fast, but before she could respond, Steve was kissing her. Once he leaned back, which surprised Gwen that he was the one ending the kiss, she looked up into his clear blue eyes and smiled.

"I love you, too," she answered. Steve smiled back and they kissed again, more passionately this time. It felt as though dozens of butterflies in her stomach were making their way out of their way out into the world for the first time and testing out their wings.

"Why does this keep happening?"

For the second time that week, Gwen and Steve jumped apart at the sound of Tony's voice.

"I mean, it's great that you've made up and all, but seriously. Look how close you are to being in a room. But no, just make out in the open doorway. Total genius."

Tony continued past them and added, "And remember that threat about your tongue, Rogers."

Steve blushed as expected.

"Why don't you come in and we could watch a movie or something," suggested Gwen.

"That sounds good," answered Steve, clearly wanting to get out of the hallway.

Gwen moved over so that Steve could get in and then led him to her bed. He looked slightly hesitant toward sitting on it, so Gwen laughed and forced him to sit down. She wasn't going to make him sit on the floor.

Gwen laid back on her pillow and picked up the remote to scan through the available movies. An idea struck and she turned on the first X-Men film.

After a few minutes, Gwen finally got Steve to lay next to her. He had blushed as he realized he was laying in bed with a girl, but she knew there was nothing to be worried about. Seeing as Gwen was nearly as awkward as Steve, she didn't dare bring this up, but she had the same morals of most people of his time. This was mainly because of the way she was raised, but she also became independent with sticking to her belief and therefore stuck out like a sore thumb in modern society. But she didn't mind.

Although she was against pre-marital..._stuff_, that didn't mean Gwen was against snuggling up next to Steve in the same bed, just as long as there wasn't much more than that. He was slightly tense at first, but he eventually relaxed and put his arm around her. He pulled her in close as she rested he head on his chest. Gwen smiled as she heard his strong heartbeat racing faster than it most likely normally went.

She was so comfortable that she hadn't even noticed when she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Right after finding Gwen and Steve, Tony went straight to the headquarters in Atlantis. He needed to find Fury.

It figured that "Lord Patch" would be standing in the center as everyone monitored the screens.

"Hey, Fury," called Tony, approaching the man.

"What now, Stark?" asked Fury without turning around.

"I want to talk to you."

"You're doing that right now."

Sighing, Tony went in front of Fury and blocked the man's view from the central monitors.

"You're not splitting up the team," stated Tony.

"I'm doing what I want," answered Fury.

"Just listen. We're going to do what _we_ want and I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say we're not splitting up."

"Stark-"

"Good luck trying to control us."

And with that, Tony set off to find the others and tell them his plan.

* * *

In a deserted part of Norway, an uninhabited village sat decaying. To any human, it was a waste of space. But to Thanos, it was the location of another gem.

He smiled widely as he picked it up out of the rubble. It was purple, a deeper color than his own skin.

Thanos had found the Space gem and was one step closer to controlling the universe.


	20. Chapter Twenty

**Good day everyone!**

**I'm going to go see _Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter_ with my mom today. Totally stoked.**

**As a side note, I posted the first chapter to my Loki/OC story today. It's called "Elsa" and will probably be updated like two or three times a week while this one will continue the same everyday posting.**

**DarkDemon01: I know right? haha.**

**torixx3: I do that too! Haha I'd give you a weird look too.**

**WillowDamon17: I sure hope not! I'd hate for Steve to have no tongue haha.**

**MysticRyter: I'm glad you loved it that much haha**

**pocahunta: I think I actually watched Twitches once...but I can't remember anything about it...**

**dragonrain618: Definitely bad news! Haha badass Tony is badass.**

**snowyclara: Be careful with your tantrum there! Avengers is definitely more amazing than X-Men (which I actually watched last night)**

**Itsgoose2u: Haha that's one of the best types of adorable!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha or would it be of RDJ? They really are like the same person. Seriously. **

**Brit. Knee: Fury's an odd one haha. Only he'd think of something like that. Yay, fluff makes up for everything!**

**DarkRulerKida: Thank you! :D**

**Arrows the Wolf: Yay! Good to hear!**

**AngelVamp6688: Hehe I'm so glad I convinced my mom to get a blu-ray player for Christmas (along with the HP films even though we have them on DVD) Blu-ray always has a few cool things that are worth watching.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty**

It took Gwen a few seconds after she woke up to realize what the warm body next was. She smiled as she opened her eyes to find Steve, sound asleep next to her. Gwen felt very fortunate that she wasn't a restless sleeper and found that they had barely moved at all.

As carefully as she could, she slid out of the bed and left Steve there. She actually thought he looked very cute like that. Gwen noticed the television was off and she wasn't sure if Steve did it or if it turned off automatically. She brushed her teeth quickly, a little paranoid about herself. She knew for a fact that television shows lied when they had couples wake up in the morning and kiss without brushing their teeth. It was just like how they had women wake up in make-up and have perfect, un-tousled hair.

By the time she got out of the bathroom, Steve had woken up and was exiting the bedroom and entered the study.

"I only meant to close my eyes for a few minutes," he said, running a hand over his face.

"This is generally the result when someone tries to do that," Gwen teased. "You should probably go change. Just be careful, don't let Tony see you."

Steve smiled and nodded before he left her room. Gwen knew Tony would tease her to no end if he caught Steve coming out of her room in the morning.

Gwen took a quick shower and dried her hair fast. She dressed before combing out her blonde locks. Just as she put down her comb, there was a knock on her door. She got up and grabbed her keycard before opening the door. On the other side was Steve, dressed in fresh clothes.

"Shall we go eat breakfast?" he asked with a smile.

"We shall," answered Gwen, smiling back. She kissed him before taking his hand and letting him lead her to the cafeteria.

The place was nearly empty. Gwen saw Clint and Barbara sitting at a table in a far corner with big smiles on their faces. Clint was making hand motions that mimicked shooting arrows. She could hear Barbara laughing at whatever Clint had just told her.

Then there was Hank who was sitting alone and staring intently at an ant farm. He wore a strange helmet like hat on his head. The doctor suddenly laughed and said, "That was a good one, Eugene."

Gwen raised her eyebrows and wondered if Hank thought he was talking with the ants.

They ate breakfast slowly, rambling about things and avoided the topic of Loki. But their conversation was stopped when their keycards began beeping. Gwen slid hers out as well as Steve. Both of the keycards said: _Everyone must report to the briefing room immediately_.

The two got up quickly and saw the other three in the cafeteria had done so as well. Gwen got excited as they headed for the briefing room, wondering if another gem had been found.

The only other people in there were Bruce, Stephen, Erik, Jane, Phil and Fury. Gwen and the others sat down and she saw that Hank still wore his hat. All of the others eventually wandered in, the Asgardians looking ready for a fight. Tony looked rather tired as Pepper helped him after he walked into a wall after missing the door.

"Alright," said Fury, "another gem has been located."

"What country is it in now?" asked Rhodey.

"Norway," answered Bruce. He touched the map on the large monitor and a spot started flashing on the holograms.

"It seems that it's in an uninhabited village," added Erik.

"I believe I know where that is," said Thor. "My father told me about the Jotuns attacking there."

"Jotuns?" repeated Luke.

"Frost Giants."

"Alright, everyone," said Fury. "Let's suit up and go find it."

"Together?" asked Tony with a smirk.

Fury sighed. "Together."

* * *

It didn't take long for everyone to get ready. The same people that went to Mount Everest were going again and everyone that had stayed before was staying again. Gwen didn't feel as nervous this time as she was certain they'd be able to get it quickly.

"Isn't Norway where Vikings were from?" asked Daisy as they flew on the quinjet.

"I have no idea," admitted Gwen. "All I know is there's a Norway part at Epcot."

Daisy laughed. "That's right! I haven't been there in ages."

"I used to live in Orlando, I went there all the time."

"You're so lucky!"

Gwen certainly didn't consider herself that lucky, but it was amusing to see Daisy get all excited like a five year old in a candy store.

"I always loved Magic Kingdom the best," continued Daisy. "But Universal Studios is _freaking awesome_."

"Have you gone to the Harry Potter area yet?"

"No, I wish. My life won't be complete until I go there."

"Maybe we should all go for a big trip," suggested Gwen with a laugh. "Avengers assemble in Orlando."

Daisy laughed too. "That's be so great."

"Guys," came Bruce's voice suddenly through the earpieces. He sounded uncertain. "It's gone."

"What's gone?" asked Steve.

"The gem. We just lost track of it."

"Hold on," said Fury. "What do you mean you 'just lost track of it'?"

"We mean that it is no longer in Norway," answered Stephen.

"Then where is it?" asked Gwen.

"We do not know."

"It just disappeared," added Jane.

There was silence.

"Alright," said Fury. "The other quinjet will turn around and head back to Atlantis. We'll continue on to check things out with Stark and Rhodes."

"Aye, aye, captain," teased Tony.

"Wait, we're not coming?" asked Barbara, obviously irritated.

"Thanos is probably the reason for it," continued Fury. "We're going to make sure that it really is clear."

"Then you'll need more help!"

"Just follow my orders, Morse."

Barbara quieted down and crossed her arms over we chest. Gwen saw Clint pat her on the knee and couldn't help but see Natasha's face harden at the sight.

The people on board the quinjet were quiet. They were waiting for some sort of sign that the other quinjet had made it to Norway. Gwen silently prayed that they would actually find the gem.

* * *

Heimdall stood on the bridge as many Asgardians were beginning work on reparing the Bifrost. Actually, they were starting from scratch. But the gatekeeper continued to watch out over all of the nine realms, mainly Midgard at the moment, making sure he was seeing everything.

And the man saw Loki.

It was strange to see how the younger prince of Asgard was fairing. He sat in a room all day doing next to nothing. He had seen when Loki had escaped his room to apologize to the Gwendolyn girl. He had seen when no one believed her that Loki had changed.

To some people, Heimdall would be one of the last people to believe that Loki changed. He had seen the prince's madness firsthand. But as gatekeeper, he could see that Loki was different. The god of mischief seemed to actually be concerned about Midgard. That was enough to throw the universe out of order. Loki wasn't one to feel that way.

And Heimdall couldn't help but wonder what was in store for Loki when he returned to Asgard.

But then the gatekeeper saw a familiar old eye open.

And he smiled.


	21. Chapter Twenty One

**Hello everyone!**

**My mom wants me to paint outside, but I don't like outside. At all. Or physical work.**

**WillowDamon17: I hope that wasn't too obvious haha. I was like, oh crap, he has one eye. That's so obvious.**

**TeamAmWolves: Aww, thanks. And I'm sorry about the cliffhangers haha. It even kills me. I suppose it's better when the story is finished and you can go right on to the next chapter. But thank you so much. I love getting detailed reviews instead of "update soon" all the time :)**

**MysticRyter: Thank you! I love Thor so much (character and movie). However, I find Loki more attractive. But that's just me haha.**

**miranda: Thanks! And yeah, she is haha.**

**StarViky: Yes, there will be more of them. A LOT more of them :)**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: It was an awesome movie. I've actually never read the book (I had wanted to but never got around to it) but it was good to me at least. I needed a good vampire film where they don't sparkle in the sun. I love how I immediately picture Tony dancing and then Steve staring at him in confusion, Bruce laughing and Fury being all like wtf**

**snowyclara: LUCKY. I won't get to go there for a long time now because of my grandma dying and we have no one to watch our pets. But the butterbeer IS amazing. And DAT RIDE. OMG. I FLEW WITH HARRY. I would love to set up an interview with Eugene the ant. Haha, don't worry. They'll be fine. OMG PATCH BATTLE. There's this guy that goes to a lot of movies specifically on Fridays, so my mom and I see him a lot. But anyway, he has an eye patch and I suggested to my mom he's Fury in disguise. **

**Itsgoose2u: I know right? Hahah. I ship them hard too. OTP FOR LIFE. As a side note, you submitted the 200 review for this story and that is a milestone in my book (mainly because I've never gotten that many reviews before) so I thank you!**

**Arrows the Wolf: He says you're welcome!**

**pocahunta: Thank you! :D**

**AngelVamp6688: There is Marvel Superhero Island or something like that at Islands of Adventure. I love that place so much.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-One**

It was eerily quiet around Atlantis once the quinjets returned. It was clear to everyone that Thanos now had one gem. Tony tried to make people realized that they had three gems and Thanos only had one, but Loki reminded them all that Thanos had the Gauntlet and all of Tony's efforts went to waste.

Gwen spent most of her time with Steve. She would sit on the side of the gym when he used punching bags and he would listen to her as she explained _The Hunger Games_ to him as they watched the movie the night after the gem went missing.

"So they have to kill each other?" asked Steve, his eyes wide.

Gwen turned her attention to him as they laid on her bed and away from the television which had the scene in which Katniss volunteered.

"You're going to have to read the books," she said with an eye roll. _The Hunger Games_ was far too hard to explain out loud.

"But they _kill each other_?"

"Yes! That's the whole point!"

She snuggled up close to him, her head resting in the crook of his neck.

"I love you," she said quietly, feeling very comfortable and content.

"I love you, too," he answered, putting an arm around her and pulling her in close and planting a kiss on the top of her head.

"What did Tony say to you?" Gwen asked as she was curious. "I mean, I know he talked to you after we argued."

"Well, he looked very angry."

"I asked you about what he said not how he looked."

"Basically he asked what I thought I was doing and that I needed to apologize to you. I can't tell you how bad I feel about that."

"What did I say about beating yourself up over things?"

"I believe you threatened to hurt me."

"That threat is still valid."

Steve laughed. "Stark would be there cheering you on. He's very protective."

"You should've seen him after this guy named Obediah tried to kill him."

"What?"

"Obadiah basically ran Stark Industries. He wasn't too happy when Tony hired me because I was just out of college and young. But I proved myself to be very useful. So useful, in fact, that Obadiah tried to use me to hide some of his files mainly because I was constantly updating security. I got suspicious and started digging around. He caught me one day, but Pepper called and I was able to get out of there before he got in his own suit and attacked Tony."

"Wow. Then what happened after that?"

"Phil recruited me for SHIELD after a press conference in which Tony admitted to being Iron Man. Natahsa trained me and we went on a spy mission together before I got transferred to Chicago around the same time Thor arrived on Earth for the first time."

"How long did you work for Stark, again?"

"A couple of years. He actually had me work part time in his own home. I had been cleaning through his private server to get rid of some potential viruses when I came across the plans for the suit. I helped him, actually."

Steve laughed again. "That sounds like something you would do."

Gwen smiled. "I couldn't help myself! Pepper wasn't too happy about the whole thing, but I thought it was kinda cool."

"So what was this spy mission you went on?"

"Oh, Tony was acting like an idiot and Natasha took on the persona of Natalie Rushman and pretended to be his secretary because he had just made Pepper CEO. I was sent with her and preteneded that I was taking a leave of absence and decided to visit him. He wasn't too pleased when he found out."

"I can't imagine he would be."

"But both Tony and Rhodey saved the day, Phil got sent to New Mexico and I got sent to Chicago."

"It seems you've had a pretty interesting life."

Gwen finally sat up and looked down at him. "So have you."

"Nah, not really. At least not until the serum."

He looked like he was going to say more, but Gwen leaned down and kissed him. Steve stopped his attempt at talking and kissed her back.

"Y'know," said Steve, looking at the screen of the television, "that Gale character sort of looks like Thor."

* * *

Gwen entered the weapons training room and found Natasha shooting a target. The blonde quietly took a gun out of its spot on a nearby wall and went to stand next to the redhead. Natasha shot, looking very angry while doing so.

"What's bothering you?" asked Gwen as she shot the gun, hitting the target in the chest.

Natasha shook her head. "Nothing."

"Natasha, I've never seen you upset. I've seen you kick ass like when we took out those security guards when Hammer's drones attacked Stark Expo, and right now I see the face you had when we did that and also sadness. And you're never sad. Actually, you never really show emotion in general."

"It's not your problem."

Gwen put down the gun and walked up close to Natasha. She hated seeing her friend this way.

"You have feelings for Clint, don't you?"

Natasha remained silent as she shot another bullet.

"Y'know, I'm not the most observant person, but I've seen your face when you see him with Doctor Morse."

Still no response.

"If it means anything," added Gwen with a shrug, "I think Clint should be with you."

Natasha cracked a smile. "Thanks, I guess."

"Don't mention it."

"Just don't tell anyone," said Natasha seriously. "I may have feelings for Clint, but I want him to be happy. And if being with Bobbi makes him happy...then so be it."

"You got it, Widow."

* * *

Gwen was just putting her gun back in its spot after Natasha left when her keycard went off. She slipped it out and saw the regular command on it. She quickly made her way to the briefing room, taking a seat next to Steve. All of the usuals were at the front of the room again.

"We've found another one," announced Bruce, not waiting for Fury to introduce the reason they were there. He made the holograms raise and Gwen's jaw unhinged as she looked at a Sphinx.

"Egypt?" asked Natasha.

"Or is it Las Vegas?" asked Tony seeming very hopeful.

The ones in the front shook their heads.

"We believe it's under the Sphinx," added Jane.

"Wouldn't that figure," muttered Steve.

"You all know what to do," said Fury.

It was true, they did. Gwen went back to her room for her suit and then to the armory for her gun. Everyone was moving fast this time, not wanting to miss another gem.

Gwen was in the quinjet in no time and held onto her seat as they rose into the air and flew to Egypt.


	22. Chapter Twenty Two

**I've started writing the next installment WEEE!**

**WillowDamon17: They are! I love them both so much.**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Oh my...you must've been very tired. I remember one time I was having a sleepover and it was four in the morning and we turned on the tv and there was a picture of Abraham Lincoln on the screen and one of us said, "Hey look, it's Abe the babe!" and we laughed until we cried. I love Steve too.**

**TeamAmWolves: I hate her too hahaha that's why I'm planning on making her a not so nice person in the future so I don't feel so bad. I think he'd be horrified too. And thank you!**

**Arrows the Wolf: I want to go too! I've seen a King Tut exhibit and a Cleopatra exhibit and I want to go to the actual country now!**

**XxLovelyLittleMeXx: Thank you! I'll try my best with the more romantic heated moments. Hopefully there will be more in coming installments :)**

**Itsgoose2u: Thank you! When I read that last line I saw that face that goes along with it and was like ehehehe.**

**snowyclara: Did I say she's dying? Oh, I mean she's already dead, my bad. She died on January 7th. Here are Eugene's answers in order: 1. It's fun. 2. I am very content, thank you. 3. I have a brother named Kabob, but the red and gold suit man stepped on him. It was horrible. 4. I can communicate with Hank. I like to tell him knock knock jokes. 5. I'm an ant. 6. I have no idea. / That was great omg. And you'll find out why it's in Egypt, don't fret! AND YES. They should watch that omg.**

**AngelVamp6688: It is a park along with Universal Studios in Orlando. They're like side by side. Islands of Adventure has Harry Potter, Jurassic Park (I'll never watch those movies the same way again after all of the velociraptor Tom Hiddleston gifs I've seen), Marvel, Dr. Seuss, The Lost Continent and Toon Lagoon. You should SO go there. I may be sixteen, but I've already decided that's where I'm going on my honeymoon one day. I went there last year (I used to go to Orlando every year but my family and I skipped it for three years) and I want to go again SO badly.**

**Brit. Knee: I'm glad it made your day! Haha.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I KNOW I think that's why I have him feel guilty because it's just too adorable. I'm such a horrible person. And yeah, Natasha does need to do that. But it just can't happen yet D: I feel like they disappeared too! But don't worry. Phil will be back and do something badass. That's all I'm gonna say.**

**dragonrain618: Haha, that's good that you liked it! I honestly am surprised at how liked that comment is.**

**Pati G W Black: They are! And I still wanna know what happened in Budapest!**

**MysticRyter: Thanks! Unfortunately now I can't watch the Iron Man movies without thinking about Gwen.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

The quinjets landed and Gwen found that the air was incredibly hot and humid. Instead of being discreet, they landed next to the Sphinx. Of course, they were instantly reminded as they exited the aircrafts that there wasn't exactly a door into the Sphinx that they could just waltz through. Gwen, however, was amazed at the sight. She had never thought that once in her life she'd go to Egypt or even see this structure.

Gwen walked cautiously, her gun already drawn. All she could think about was the movie _The Mummy_ and was terrified that mummies were going to come to life and try to kill her.

She figured that there would actually be traps at this location as it seemed a bit obvious. Why wouldn't there be traps in a place that's supposed to be guarded?

Gwen saw that the Asgardian Hogun approached the Sphinx. She watched curiously as he waved one of his hands around and muttered something under his breath. Out of nowhere, the ground shook as a door in the ground opened. Sand fell down the newfound hole which was actually an entrance to some stairs.

"Well," said Fandral, "what are we waiting for?"

Sif and Thor went down first followed by the others. Clint, Barbara and Natasha all stayed in the back while Steve looked unsure of where he should be. But he then took his place next to Gwen.

They continued down a narrow corridor. The walls were made of sand colored rock and there were torches on both sides of the hall. The place had a sense of foreboding and Gwen couldn't help but think that something sharp was going to jump out and stab them at any moment.

Fortunately, this walk did not take long.

They came upon a room. Before them was some sort of burial tomb. Golden jewels hung everywhere and were covered by centuries of cobwebs. If Gwen hadn't been there for the gem, she would've been bursting with excitement about finding an Egyptian tomb.

On the other side of this room was a sarcophagus. It looked as though it might have belonged to a pharoh, but from the distance Gwen was at, she couldn't be sure. Gwen could see something glowing on it and knew immediately that this was the gem not only from seeing it, but because she could feel the energy from it.

She stepped forward into the room, but was pulled back by Steve as sharp spikes shot up from the rock floor. Breathing fast from her now racing heart, Gwen regained her composure.

"Thanks," she muttered to Steve.

"Do you want me to go?" he asked.

Gwen shook her head. "I can do it."

"No," said Sif suddenly, moving forward. "I shall get the gem."

Gwen watched as Sif jumped from specific spots of the floor to other specific spots. She wasn't quite sure how the warrior knew where areas were trapped, but at least she hadn't gotten stabbed yet.

At last, Sif made it to the sarcophagus and grabbed the gem from on top. Gwen saw that it was blue as the the flames from the torches' reflection flickered in the color.

Sif smiled triumphantly as she made her way back to the group. She stood by the rest of the Asgardians.

"It is the Mind gem," she explained.

"That doesn't surprise me," muttered Clint angrily, most likely thinking about Loki.

"So I think it's safe to assume it controls minds?" asked Luke.

"Yes," answered Thor.

"Well, shall we head back?" asked Fandral.

"Something seems wrong," said Daisy.

"What d'you mean?" asked Gwen.

"That was too simple. I mean, the last gem we got involved part of a mountain collapsing."

"So you think the Sphinx will collapse?" asked Natasha.

"No, I'm actually worried about something else."

Before she could explain more, a rumbling noise began.

"Uh, guys," came Tony's voice. "You might want to get out of there."

"What's going on?" asked Barbara.

"The Sphinx looks kind of funny," added Rhodey.

"Funny as in...?" Steve trailed off.

"As in its eyes just started glowing," answered Tony.

Just then, sand and dust began falling on them from the ceiling which was now moving.

"What's happening?" yelled Daisy over the noise.

"The ceiling's coming down!" answered Gwen.

"I think we should run," suggested Clint.

"Running sounds good," agreed Volstagg whose grip on his axe tightened.

And then they took off.

It was hard to run through such a narrow corridor with so many people, but the fact the ceiling was lowering was enough to make them run much faster than they ever could before.

Steve was the last one out as he dove out of the door to avoid being crushed. Everyone made their way to the front of the Sphinx to see if Tony had been telling the truth.

Indeed the eyes of Sphinx were glowing and it seemed to actually look down at them. It growled loudly, making the ground rumble.

Just as the Sphinx rose one of its paws, some sort of magical force shot from behind them all, hitting the structure. It stopped and then put its paw back down, looking back to normal as its eyes stopped glowing.

Gwen as well as the others whipped around to see who had stopped it. She thought that it had been one of the Asgardians, but it surely wasn't one of their voices who spoke.

"What a poor piece of magic! If the All-Father himself had cast it, it might have taken me a few more seconds to stop it! What a shame."

A man stood there with short brown hair. His hands were placed in fists at his hips and a cocky smile took up his face.

"But then again, nothing can really be a challenge to me," he continued, strutting forward. He sounded worse than Tony and Fandral combined.

"Uh," said Steve uncertainly, "who are you?"

"I am Eros of Titan," said the man. "And I am here to assist you, humans."

"What?" asked Clint. Tony and Rhodey both landed on the ground to see who everyone was talking to.

"My brother threatens your world-"

"Brother?" asked Thor, his eyebrows raised.

"Unfortunately, yes," said Eros, looking at his nails. "Thanos isn't much of a brother, really. Especially once he threatened Titan."

"Uh, what's Titan?" asked Barbara.

"It is one of Saturn's moons," stated Hogun. "I remember learning the stories of the Eternals as a child."

"And you're here to help stop Thanos?" asked Steve.

"But of course," answered Eros, throwing Sif a dashing smile. She frowned in return.

"Then we'll take you back to base with us."

"And where is this base?"

"Atlantis," stated Gwen.

Eros's eyes lit up at the sound of the name and he threw Gwen a flirty smile. Steve tensed up beside her.

"And is Namor still there?" asked Eros.

Everyone stared at Eros, unsure of who this "Namor" was.

"I take that as a no."

The quinjets landed back around them and Gwen followed Steve into one. It seemed that Eros debated which one to go in, but noticed there were more women in the one Gwen boarded, so he followed them in there.

"So...what's your name?" he asked, sitting across from Gwen.

"Gwendolyn Powers," she answered.

"Well, Gwendolyn Powers, your eyes would be the greatest envy on Titan."

Steve cleared his throat and kissed the top of Gwen's head before starting conversation with Luke.

"Ah," said Eros with a grin, "he claims you."

"Excuse me?"

"He showed me that you are his property and that I should not dare try to possess you."

Gwen's jaw unhinged slightly and her eyes grew wide. "Are you kidding me?"

"Not in the slightest."

"I'm not 'property.'"

"You are ignorant, Gwendolyn Powers. I find it humorous."

"Well, then keep laughing."


	23. Chapter Twenty Three

**Excuse me for the terrible fluff in this chapter. I'm horrible at writing it and sit there thinking, wtf did I just do. I actually had to stop after one line I wrote because I was like OMG WHAT I CAN'T.**

**Arrows the Wolf: Oh, totally. Eros has a lot to learn.**

**TeamAmWolves: I don't like him hitting on Gwen either haha. And I LOVED the idea of him getting turned down by Sif. So I added something like that in this chapter. I couldn't help myself.**

**WillowDamon17: I didn't know it either haha. I just wanted Hogun to do something. And thanks!**

**Itsgoose2u: Thanks! I think it's adorable too. I could see Steve as being one to get really possessive.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha, I'm glad you enjoyed that. I LOVED THAT SHORT FILM OMG. My mom loved it because she loves Phil like a lot and when we found that on the Captain America blu-ray she couldn't stop laughing. **

**snowyclara: I bet it was a sucky death 'cause I bet Tony did it on purpose. I also don't like Eros, but he is incredibly entertaining to write haha. And also, like in another review, I decided to add a bit of badass Sif in here. And Tony. Sort of. **

**Lena Sauran: Thank you! Oh man, I should've thought of the North Pole. Now it's too late D: But unfortunately there's one gem to go and is also the center of the climax, but I should've thought of that. **

**AngelVamp6688: It sounds like you guys are gonna have fun! There's a spiderman 3D ride and a hulk rollercoaster. I can't remember what else is in that area, but if you look it up on the internet I'm sure it'll tell you.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

"Who the _hell_ is this?"

Fury stood in the briefing room as the Gwen and the others led Eros inside.

"I am Eros of Titan," Eros introduced himself, his head held high. "It is an honor to meet you, pirate. Though I must say your head is a new level of shine."

"Please tell me this guy is actually from outside of earth and not some drunk you picked up off the streets."

"He used magic," said Thor. "He claims to be the brother of Thanos."

"Thanos has a brother?" asked Bruce.

"Indeed," answered Eros. "And I am happy to assist with any needs that there are."

He then threw a wink in Jane's direction. It was fortunate that Thor didn't see.

"Yeah," said Fury, "well right now we need you to tell us everything you know about Thanos."

"Oh, but where to begin?" said Eros. He ran his hand over the table. "My brother is obsessed with power."

"We noticed," added Tony.

"He is also obsessed with Death."

"That doesn't surprise me," said Hank.

"Oh, but you do not understand," continued Eros, throwing Hank a look. "He is in love with Her."

"Her?" asked Luke.

"Yes. Thanos has a goal and that goal is to impress Death. He wishes to court her."

"You can't court the idea of death," said Jane, her brow furrowed.

"That is where you are wrong, mortal. Death came to Thanos in the image of a woman. He claims he fell in love with her. And unless my information is incorrect, someone told Thanos 'to challenge the humans is to court Death.'"

Everyone looked at Loki who had been silently standing in the room.

Eros laughed. "Do not worry, it was not the mischievous ram that you so desperately claim is about to turn on you. It was the Other. So, of course, Thanos was not about to pass up the opportunity to impress Death. My, the only time he would pass it up is if he were dead himself! But do not fret, my human friends. You now have the assistance of Eros. There is nothing to fear."

"Right..." said Tony sarcastically.

"Alright then," said Fury. "You're all dismissed until we figure out what to do with Mr. Perfect over here."

* * *

It wasn't long before Gwen and Steve were back in her room and watching a movie, this one being Star Wars.

Gwen easily realized that there was nothing better in the world than just simply being with Steve. It didn't matter what they were doing, she just loved being with him. And she seriously hoped he felt the same way. Gwen almost laughed at herself. Why wouldn't he feel the same way? If he didn't he wouldn't be spending all of this time with her.

"Are you scared?" she suddenly asked without thinking.

"Scared about what?" replied Steve.

"About all of this."

Steve was silent as he thought about his answer.

"I suppose. But I know we'll be able to save the world."

Gwen smiled as she sat up and kissed him on the lips. He responded automatically. Gwen loved kissing Steve. She felt everything she ever worried about melt away when their lips touched. She loved the way he'd gently wrap his arms around her and pull her closer as if he was afraid she'd float away. However, Gwen had no intention of floating away. She had never thought she'd love someone as much as she loved Steve, especially after her parents died. At first, Gwen had thought it was just a cliché phrase that a lot of people said when they lost someone close to them. But after she truly experienced the pain of loss, she had felt horrible.

But Gwen didn't care anymore. Steve was all she ever needed.

She ran her hands through his hair as Steve kept her close to him. The only times they broke apart was simply to breath, but they went right back to each other. Gwen's heart was racing and she could tell that Steve's was too.

"Do you ever forget that you're muscular?" wondered Gwen out loud. She suddenly felt stupid. She couldn't believe how many times lately she had asked questions without thinking about them first.

Steve laughed. "What?"

"I mean, do you ever wake up thinking you're still skinny?"

He was quiet for a moment as he considered her question and his potential answer. "Well, I guess I do. I mean, when I look at our current situation, I think about how in the world this is happening to me."

"You mean with Thanos?"

"No, I mean with you in my arms."

Gwen's heart felt like it rose into her throat with happiness. He was so sweet without even meaning to be.

"Trust me," said Gwen, "I don't understand it either."

"What?"

"I mean, I'm not too social to be honest. In school I was just sort of there. I had a group of friends and that was that. I didn't really do anything except study."

"So you never thought that you'd end up with someone?"

She shook her head. "No, I didn't. Especially not a World War II hero."

Steve laughed. "Trust me, I didn't expect to fall in love with a beautiful woman in the twenty-first century."

Gwen bit her lip to stop herself from giggling. She really needed to learn how to control that.

* * *

After the movie finished, Gwen and Steve went to the cafeteria for food which happened to be where Eros was. And it looked like he was causing some trouble.

"I mean no harm to her," said the obvious womanizer to Tony who was looking very angry and was standing next to his chair. "I simply gave her a compliment."

"Calm down, Tony," said Pepper who was smiling and sitting at a table.

"He was _flirting_ with you," argued Tony.

"All he said was my hair looks beautiful!"

"With a _seductive smile_!"

Both Gwen and Steve tried their best to hide themselves so they could eat in peace, but Tony noticed them and had other plans.

"Hey Gwenie and Capsicle, come here!"

Gwen groaned as she and Steve relucantly went over to where Tony and Pepper were residing.

"You have anything to say to Gwenie?" Tony asked Eros, his eyebrows raised.

Eros smiled, though he looked at Steve and it faultered for a moment, but it didn't last long. "No, I do not."

"Yeah, exactly, stay away from other people's girlfriends."

"Do not fret," laughed Eros. "I do not seek what is someone else's possession."

And with that he walked away.

"Possession?" repeated Pepper, her brow now furrowed. "What?"

"I don't know what they do where he's from," said Tony, stuffing a hamburger into his mouth, "but I don't play that way."

Gwen sighed as she and Steve went to get their own food, hands held. She saw with curiosity that Fandral and Darcy were sitting alone at a table together just as Thor and Jane were together. She saw Eros heading towards Sif who was talking with Hogun.

After getting their food, Gwen and Steve went back to the table where Tony and Pepper were. Out of nowhere there was loud _thump_.

Gwen's head shot up as she saw Sif looking triumpantly down at Eros who was now on his back and groaning. Hogun even had a smile on his face at this point which Gwen thought was impossible.

And with that, Sif walked away, a smile still on her face.


	24. Chapter Twenty Four

**My mom and I got Lego Batman 2.**

**AWW YEAAAAH!**

**yesiamweird: Well, that's good! And I'm glad you think that way about Eros haha.**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: omg YES. I love reading fluff, but I hate writing it because I get all mushy and stuff while action is like aww heck yeah type thing going on. **

**dragonrain618: Haha I'm actually glad about that!**

**snowyclara: Haha I know right! It's okay to hate Eros. Maybe you'll have more to ramble about after this chapter.**

**TeamAmWolves: Hahah I'm happy to hear that you loved that. And yeah, that was about the part. I'm terrible when it comes to sappiness.**

**Lena Sauran: I think she's very proud of herself haha.**

**WillowDamon17: Thanks! I'm glad you think they're cute.**

**Arrows the Wolf: I love Star Wars too. I think Hogun might have smiled when they all went to Earth in _Thor _and they found him with Jane, Darcy and Erik. But I can't remember.**

**MysticRyter: Hahaha good idea.**

**Itsgoose2u: When I saw *Loki grin* I imagined the one he had when he cut that guy's eye out. There's no denying it was an adorable smile.**

**JohnDaveForever: Haha thanks! You must really like it if you typed nonesense! (Best way to express oneself, might I add :D)**

**tribute14: I honestly laughed out loud when I wrote that line haha.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I think Tony should marry her too. They'd be a great married couple haha. It should be a tradition! I'll have to do that whenever people come to earth haha. **

**pocahunta: Haha thanks! I didn't even notice that.**

**StarViky: I know right? She really is awesome!**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

Gwen easily found herself trying to avoid Eros. It seemed the only time he wouldn't hit on her was when she was with Steve who, according to Eros, was her "mate." Needless to say, even Gwen wanted to punch the guy. And that said a lot.

So, in order to avoid Eros, Gwen spent most of her time alone with Steve. She enjoyed simply being with him as he did with her. But what Gwen hated was how he always let her win when they fought against each other in the hand-to-hand combat training room.

"It's not fair!" she whined as she got up from the mat on the floor.

"Well, it's not like I'm actually going to hurt you," answered Steve. He stayed laying on the mat where Gwen had pinned him down.

"At least when I've fought with Natasha she actually fights back. Same with Clint."

"So you really want me to try and hit you?"

"That's all I'm asking."

Steve finally stood up and signed. "Are you sure?"

Gwen didn't answer as she took his hesitation to her advantage and swung out her leg and caused him to fall to the ground.

Steve hit the mat, back on his back. Gwen leaned down to pin him down on the mat, but was caught by surprise as Steve grabbed her and they rolled over. Gwen couldn't stop the laughter that escaped her lips and found the Steve was laughing too. Unfortunately, she realized that Steve now had her pinned.

"Looks like you won," Captain," Gwen said with a smirk.

"You let me win," he replied.

"Now you know what it feels like."

There was a silence as they each caught their breath. Then suddenly Steve leaned down and kissed her. Gwen lifted her arms and put then around his neck, her fingers roaming through his hair.

When they finally pulled away from each other, they were out of breath. The couple's foreheads were left touching as they savored the moment, just in case Tony decided to walk in on them and interrupt again.

"I love you," Steve whispered. He planted a kiss on her forehead and Gwen felt her brain shut down.

"I love you, too," she managed to say. She leaned up and kissed him again.

"What do you want to do?" asked Steve when they pulled apart again. "I mean, when this is all over."

"I suppose I'll go back to my regular life," she said. "How about you?"

"Same, I guess. But then again, our lives aren't normal, are they?"

Gwen laughed. "Far from it."

"I know this will sound weird," said Steve, "but I'm kind of glad I got frozen in that ice."

"I would hope so seeing as it saved your life."

"No, I mean, I felt like that was a bad thing when I woke up. I realized that everything had gone by without me. But if I hadn't been frozen, I would've never met you."

Gwen felt heart speed up at his words.

"You mean the world to me," he continued. "And I love you more than anything."

"I love you more than anything, too," agreed Gwen.

And Steve smiled down at her as he kissed her again.

* * *

Everything was bothering Natasha. Everything. Whether it be Phil and Fury talking to each other like gossiping teenagers and refusing to talk to anyone else about it or Hank walking around in his weird helmet, she just wanted to lash out at everyone. But Natasha knew how to calm herself. She knew that letting her feelings for Clint get in the way of their mission was a bad idea.

And the arrival of this Eros certainly wasn't helping matters.

"You wreak of jealously."

Natasha turned around from her spot on the couch in front of the fireplace. She had been alone until the universe's biggest womanizer decide to show up.

"What do you want?" she asked, clearly annoyed.

"I simply know you are hurting," he answered, coming and sitting down next to her.

"I'm not jealous."

"That is a terrible lie."

Natasha scowled. "I'm not talking to you about this."

"I am not asking you to."

This got Natasha's attention. She turned to face him again.

"I can help you for a bit," he said. "I can control others emotions. I can relieve you of your heartache for a time, but it will not last forever."

She debated this for about thirty seconds before answering.

"Okay," she answered quietly.

Eros put a hand on her forehead and Natasha felt herself calming down. When she thought of Barbara, she didn't feel angry. When she thought of Clint, she didn't feel pain in her heart. She felt calm.

Eros eventually pulled his had away.

"Thank you," said Natasha.

"You are welcome, fire head. Just be happy I did not take advantage of this."

And with that, Eros got up and left the common area, leaving Natasha feeling the best she had in days.

* * *

Back at the throne Thanos had sat upon, a woman with long blonde hair sat next to it, looking very bored. She tapped her long fingernails, which were painted green, on the rocks, her chin resting in the palm of her other hand.

"This is _so_ boring," she finally whined.

A very tall and muscular man with black hair and blue eyes standing nearby whipped his head around to look at her. "Patience, my love."

"Lord Thanos said he'd find Loki and the gems and then he'd come back and we'd take over the universe. Why is he taking so long!"

"The humans, perhaps?"

The woman scoffed. "Skurge, you know the humans are no match for us."

"You saw what they did to the Chitauri, Amora," answered Skurge.

"Yes, but we aren't using the Chitauri this time. And the army is not under Loki's foolish rule."

"Then what are you suggesting?"

Amora smiled as she rose from her spot. "We go to Asgard. We kill the Queen and take the tesseract. We could kill Heimdall too, just for fun."

"Lord Thanos said-"

"I do not care what he said!" she shouted. "Can you not see what he is doing?"

Skurge raised his eyebrows.

Amora gained control of herself again and gave her famous seductive smile that got her whatever she wanted. She slowly strutted over to Skurge and ran a fingernail gently under his chin.

"He is manipulating us, my dear," she said in a soft voice. "He simply wants to use us."

"You are right," he agreed automatically as though he had no choice but to say so.

"That's right. I always am. Actually, I have a better plan." She leaned in close to Skurge's ear and whispered. "We will wait for Lord Thanos to return with the gems and the Gauntlet. We will then slit the Titan's throat and take the power for ourselves. We will lead the army to Midgard and take over the universe. We will do it together, Executioner."

"Yes, my love."

And the Enchantress smiled.


	25. Chapter Twenty Five

**So we're nearing the end guys. I can't remember how many chapters are left, but there isn't a lot.**

**dragonrain618: That means I'm not crazy for actually liking the Enchantress as a villain. I thought I was insane haha.**

**Arrows the Wolf: I'm terribly sorry for your nightmares. Just think about rainbows and unicorns.**

**MysticRyter: He is a bit of a stalker. Eros is just creepy all around.**

**WillowDamon17: Hehe I do think his face has an invisible target on it.**

**AngelVamp6688: I know, it makes me sad too. But we haven't gotten even past the different plot points of the love triangle yet! And she will get a distraction eventually. **

**Itsgoose2u: Just wait until the last installment. There will be a lot of things happening they can't see yet. Yeah, that was his best smile! I loved it so much.**

**Lena Sauran: At least you won't be upset by the things that progress through Bobbi and Clint's relationship!**

**TeamAmWolves: I'm not taking that in a bad way at all! I'm very glad you shared your concern with me. I, too, realized that there are so many characters, but I do have to say, each one has a purpose even if they haven't done it yet. It's sort of hard to explain actually. However, I am taking this into consideration and have decided on some changes in the next installments so that the characters aren't forgotten about if I don't mention them in a while. Thank you for telling me this :D**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: He should do that to Clint...but I bet he'd freak out at someone controlling anything about him unfortunately. And that'd be the best thing ever with Gwen punching Eros haha. **

**JustYourAverageWitch: I hope they don't either! I honestly love Gwen and Steve far too much to do anything to them haha. Thanks!**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Hahaha I love how we leave reviews like this to each other. Thank you! I think jumping off a cliff is good. That's what I tend to do.**

**snowyclara: Oh my...that would've been a sight. I had to throw in a bit of cocky Eros in there. He can't be completely nice for more than a minute. And I loved your list there. Don't worry, Heimdall won't die nor will Frigga. I love them far too much to kill them. I have a problem when it comes to killing characters. I either kill no one or kill everyone. It's awful.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

Thanos was very pleased to at least have the Space gem. Without it, he'd have no way to get his army to Midgard. Especially now that he found the last gem before the humans.

He had sensed his brother's arrival and was thoroughly annoyed by it. It figured he'd come from Titan to try and stop him. It was far too obvious. But Thanos didn't underestimate Eros. He may be cocky and arrogant, but he also has power.

Unfortunately, Thanos had visited the land of Egypt and found that the gem was gone. He had controlled his anger, not wanting to destroy the Sphinx. Once he ruled the Earth, he could have it changed to his own face.

So Thanos remained hidden among people as he now sat upon what the mortals called the "White House," which he thought was a terribly unoriginal name for a white building, and held the Space gem. He knew that Amora and Skurge were most likely getting antsy and he knew that Amora wanted power and that she was manipulative. So he was not risking going back to them. He'd find a way to kill them once he had the universe.

Thanos held the Space gem high in his hands, closed his eyes and muttered a spell under his breath, one he knew would make the gem work. He opened his eyes and smiled at the sight of the gem glowing. The glow continued to grow until it shot a ray of light out in front of him, nearly close enough to touch.

"My army!" he called into the portal. "It is time!"

His wicked smile grew on his face as his army began stepping out of the portal. They had green, reptilian skin and pointed ears. They held their weapons in their hands and Thanos wondered if these were really weapons or simply others that shape-shifted into this form.

"Welcome to earth!" he called out to the Skrulls as they continued to arrive on the planet. Thanos laughed as though this was all the funniest thing in the world.

"What would you like us to do, Master?" asked one of the lead Skrulls.

Thanos smiled like the Mad Titan he was.

"Kill them all."

* * *

It was easy for Gwen to fall asleep that night. She had been smiling all through dinner causing Pepper and Daisy sto raise their eyebrows and telepathically beg to hear about why she seemed so happy. But she felt slightly embarressed at the idea of telling them what Steve said, no matter how sweet it was. When she looked at Steve, she imagined him to be some sort of wrestler or something while in reality, he was like an innocent boy who could accidently crush something if he wasn't careful.

A tap from Gwen's balcony caused her to wake up with a start. She turned her head to look out into the sea and saw a figure. She wasn't sure if she was imagining this or not. It looked like some sort of man, but when Gwen leaned forward to get a closer look, her keycard began screaming at her.

Gwen's head whipped in the direction of the study, but by the time Gwen turned back to the balcony, the figure was gone. Either there was a person swimming around Atlantis or Gwen had lost her mind.

Shaking her head, Gwen got out of bed after checking the alarm clock and saw it was eight in the morning. At least it wasn't _too_ early. She approached the keycard sitting on the desk and picked it up. Once again, it had the usual message. She became very excited as this meant they found the last gem.

Gwen quickly got dressed before leaving her room. Steve was standing there, his hand up in a fist as though he had been about to knock.

"Oh, hey," he said, putting his hand down.

"Got the message?" she asked.

Steve nodded as they linked hands and walked to the briefing room together.

The screen in the room, however, didn't show a map like all of the other times. It showed a news anchor talking and there were several other images of news footage being shot outside.

"What is being called an extraterrestrial attack has started in Washington D. C. this morning," said the anchorwoman. "An unidentified race is currently firing towards what witnesses are claiming as the Capitol building. Every citizen is being asked to evacuate."

"There must be a gem there," said Bruce, breaking the horrified silence while cleaning his glasses on his shirt. "If Thanos is finally attacking, it's because there's a gem there. And it's the last one."

"_Oh_," said Erik suddenly, putting a hand on his face in a faceplam.

"What is it?" asked Thor with concern.

"Before I was brought to all of you I had been in an underground lab in D. C. There had been high gamma readings from nearby."

"So is it in that lab?" asked Hank.

"No. It was coming from under the Washington Monument."

"Well, I'm not waiting around," said Tony, rising from his seat.

"We don't have a plan yet," said Clint.

"These things-"

"They are called Skrulls," corrected Eros with a lazy voice, his feet up on the table and his hands behind his head.

"These _Skrulls_ are attacking the capitol of America. Actually, it doesn't matter what city they're attacking, we need to stop it."

"We should bring the other gems," suggested Stephen.

"What?" asked Daisy, her brow furrowed. "Are you serious? What if Thanos gets hold of them?"

"There is only one way to defeat Thanos," said Loki, "and that is to use to Gauntlet on him."

"So we have to get it from him?" asked Gwen.

"Yes. Only then can he be destroyed."

"Well, then that's what we're going to do," said Steve.

"Steal the Gauntlet?" asked Luke.

Steve nodded.

"What do we do first?" asked Barbara.

They all looked at Fury who stared back, giving them their answer in three words.

"We suit up."


	26. Chapter Twenty Six

**GAH I'm like dying here. I'm really nervous for the rest of the chapters. I hope you guys like them!**

**I wanted to also post this quickly because I can.**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: My God, my soda nearly came out of my nose as I read that. That was so great lmao.**

**MysticRyter: People have actually adopted my mom as their own mother...**

**Arrows the Wolf: Oh, he's coming along. Hah, he really is incredibly attractive in his armor omg.**

**tribute14: It's actually pretty good! You can play a lot of different characters after you finish the story once (and you unlock them). I love playing Superman because when you fly it plays the Superman theme by John Williams. You can also travel around Gotham City. It's pretty big for a Lego Game and there's Wayne Tower and all sorts of other stuff.**

**Itsgoose2u: Thanks! And you'll find out eventually...**

**Lena Sauran: And they don't come in peace!**

**TeamAmWolves: Haha I'm getting excited too. And thanks for the kick ass compliment, made me very happy :D Thank you! **

**WillowDamon17: Haha they're the Avengers, everything is easy. I'm kidding, there will be destruction.**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

Thanos watched from the the "White House" as the Skrulls destroyed everything in their path. He knew the Avengers would come soon, but that didn't mean he couldn't have some fun first.

The Titan was waiting for them to arrive before he got the last gem. Actually, he was hoping they'd do him a favor and recover it themselves. He'd then have enough power to kill them all and retrieve the other gems. It was a plan without faults.

And after he was successful, he would have the universe to himself.

And so he smiled. This was going to be very amusing.

* * *

Atlantis was in a frenzy after it was discovered that Thanos and his Skrull army were attacking. The Asgardians gathered their weapons and put on their armor while others got their guns and uniforms on.

Hank insisted that he was coming along this time. His helmet was considerably smaller, fitting over almost all of his head except for his mouth and nose. His suit was skin tight and red with black boots and gloves.

Also this time, Loki was coming along. Fury believed that if Loki truly was trying to help, they'd need him in order to defeat Thanos as the god seemed to know more about it than anyone else. The Asgardians, except for Thor, weren't very thrilled about it as were many others. It seemed that Gwen was the only human who didn't mind and Thor was the happiest as he kept giving Loki pats on the back out of excitement of fighting side by side again, but Gwen could tell that every time that happened, Loki got the wind knocked out of him.

Jane, Darcy, Erik and Pepper were being moved onto the helicarrier which was going to be flying nearby D. C. just in case. Gwen had noticed Darcy was aimed with what seemed to be a taser and was looking ready to use it on anyone she had to.

Tony and Rhodey had immediately gone to suit up, both of them ready for a fight. Agent Hill had gone onto the helicarrier as well, taking her position in the command center, ordering the different SHIELD workers around. Phil stayed with Fury, the two of them buzzing around and giving orders like a couple of busy bees.

Stephen had aquired a "magical" bag that was able to turn invisible and placed all of the gems inside it. According to him, the bag would stay invisible as long as he held it.

Eros was looking rather bored seeing as he didn't need any weapons and he was already in his own clothes, so he simply sat around until everyone started making their way towards the helicarrier.

However, Gwen was becoming very nervous. This wasn't like confronting Loki on Stark Tower. That had just been one god and she had also had a plan. This was a Titan with an alien army that, judging by the news footage, could shape-shift. She was so nervous that she was actually getting nauseous.

As she slowly walked from her room and to the helicarrier, a hand intertwined with one of hers and she turned to the right to see Steve. He was suited up and had his shield on his back. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye and saw how nervous she was and stopped them from walking.

Before Gwen knew it, she had his muscular arms wrapped around her. She tucked her head under his chin and savored the moment.

"It's gonna be okay," he whispered. "We'll go to D. C., we'll get the gem, we'll steal the Gauntlet, we'll defeat Thanos and then go home."

"You make it sound like it'll be easy," she replied.

"I'm not gonna let anything happen to you."

"I'm not worried about myself."

Steve pulled back with a smirk. "You're worried about me?"

"I'd be rather sad if you died."

Steve grabbed her face and kissed her hard. Gwen placed her hands on his chest and moved them to around his neck as he slid his down to her lower back. He pulled her as close as possible to him almost as if the two were trying to melt into each other.

Unfortunately they pulled apart not only because there was a world to save, but simply because they sort of needed air. They pressed their foreheads against each other.

"I love you," said Steve, his lips still slightly touching hers.

"I love you, too," answered Gwen, thanking God that she didn't stutter.

They smiled at each other before pulling apart and heading for the helicarrier to board a quinjet.

Fury climbed into the other one that was sitting there. Hank followed him as well as Loki and the rest of the Asgardians, Stephen. Bruce and even Phil.

Everyone else entered the other quinjet. Daisy was looking rather excited, actually. Luke seemed grumpy as he watched out the quinjet's windows as they took off from the helicarrier. Gwen could see Barbara and Clint holding hands, so she looked at Natasha who not only seemed to not notice this interaction, but seemed perfectly fine and back to her normal self. This was certainly odd in the eyes of Gwen, seeing as she knew that Natasha was upset over the whole thing.

"Everyone ready?" asked Fury's voice in their earpieces as the other quinjet took off. No one gave him an answer as he already knew they had no choice but to go.

Gwen could nearly hear Tony smile as he spoke, breaking the silence that had fallen over everyone.

"Come on guys, let's kick some creepy alien ass."

* * *

Heimdall looked at the man before him as they stood on the bridge. The man held the tesseract in his hands, ready to use it.

"Are you sure you are ready for this?" asked the gatekeeper, his eyebrows raised.

"Even if I was not, I must do this."

"I see battle. Thanos wishes to kill them all."

"Thanos is but a boy in a Titan's body. He will not succeed."

The man activated the tesseract, opening a portal in the Asgardian air.

"I will see you soon, Heimdall," he said.

Heimdall nodded. "Good luck, my King."

And with that, Odin All-Father climbed onto his horse and entered the portal, arriving on Midgard.


	27. Chapter Twenty Seven

**The battle begins in this chapter! Please tell me if reference landmarks wrong. I've never been to D. C. so I don't know where everything is exactly. I also must warn you that I jump from character to character a lot. I wanted to show exactly what almost everyone was doing. **

**I am also sorry for anything you don't like in this chapter. Remember, don't be mad at me. Be mad at the characters. And also, I changed something about Hank that I'm not sure is true, but it worked with the story so I made it that way. You'll know once you get there.**

**TeamAmWolves: Please what?**

**Lena Sauran: Except unfortunately not in this chapter! **

**dragonrain618: I hope you're able to clean up the mess from your mind being blown haha. **

**Arrows the Wolf: Me too...LIFE. RUINER.**

**The Red Dove: Thank you! I'll try my best!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha I can't wait for Spidey too. I'm going to try to base him off of Andrew Garfield's performance, unless I don't like it. Haha, I could totally see everyone being all like wtf when Odin comes. That's probably how I would be. And I think I have a feeling I know what you think Steve's question is...**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: They would be best friends! We should, like, set up a play date for them or something. Silly Steve, he's been traveling from parallel universes to cheat omg.**

**WillowDamon17: Because Odin's pretty badass when you get past the whole failed parenting part.**

**AngelVamp6688: Don't worry, I get excited like that too haha. I did that at the last Harry Potter movie, except everyone else was doing the same thing.**

**Itsgoose2u: YES HE DOES LIVE! haha, thanks! **

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

The quinjets landed on the National Mall which overlooked the Capital building and the Washington Monument. Gwen saw Clint, Barbara and the Asgardians get out right away.

"Can't you land us next to the Monument?" Gwen asked the pilot.

"Take the other quinjet," said Fury. "We'll stay here."

"Alright," said Steve, "Gwen, Cage, Daisy, you're coming with me."

"Count me in," said Hank, his helmet now perfectly in place on his head. He looked like some sort of robot with it on.

"Are you sure, Doctor?"

"Oh, yes. I'm positive."

Steve nodded. "Stark, Rhodey, you guys watch the skies. Try to take out as many Skrulls as you can."

"Got it, Rogers," answered Tony.

Gwen could see two separate Iron Men flying through the sky, one shooting deadly beams and the other firing bullets.

"Barton, you keep watch over the Monument," ordered Steve.

"My pleasure, Cap."

"I'll stay with him," said Natasha immediately, getting out of the quinjet and taking her gun out of its holster.

"Me too," added Barbara.

"Asgardians, Eros, go kill us some Skrull."

They all smiled, even Hogun, as they took off with their weapons and began taking out Skrull.

"Let's get down to the Monument," ordered Steve as they climbed into the other quinjet. They were all quiet as it shot forward and descended quickly, landing next to the obelisk. They all got out as the quinjet took off again, leaving them next to Monument.

* * *

"Where is Thanos?" asked Thor as he whacked a Skrull with Mjolnir, sending it flying into another group of them and effectively knocking them down like bowling pins.

"I do not know," answered Loki, throwing a sharp bladed disk he conjured at another. "I assume he is hiding."

"I am tired of waiting," added Volstagg. He swung his axe around, slicing three Skrulls at once.

Sif laughed as she stabbed with her spear. "Since when do you long for battle?"

"I hope you are not planning on taking on Thanos yourself," joked Fandral. He saw a Skrull almost catch Hogun off guard and jabbed his sword at the opponent.

"It would be suicide," agreed Hogun, lifting his mace and smashing another in the back.

"What is that?" asked Sif suddenly, pointing towards the sky.

The gods looked up to see that some of the Skrull had shapeshifter into what seemed to be small planes and were flying towards the helicarrier.

"That is where Jane is!" exclaimed Thor, shooting forward and ready to get up there.

"There is nothing we can do right now," said Loki, trying to calm his brother. "All we can do is fight here."

Thor smiled as he swung out Mjolnir at a Skrull who tried sneaking up behind him. "Just like old times, brother."

Loki smirked and surprised himself at how it was not reluctant. "Just like old times."

* * *

"Try to shoot them, Clint!" exclaimed Barbara as her, the archer and Natasha saw the Skrulls going to the helicarrier.

"My arrows are just going right through them," observed Clint angrily.

"Then shoot the ones down here," suggested Natasha.

Clint smiled at her and she could feel her heart jump at the simple action. But her attention was taken away by some approaching Skrull which she jumped on and began attacking.

Natasha managed to knock down her opponent and raised her gun. She fired several bullets at them, trying to catch them all off guard.

Barbara was doing the same, the two of them trying their best to keep the Skrulls off of Clint's back as they realized he was picking them off easily.

"We're out numbered!" exclaimed Natasha.

"Just like New York City all over again!" Clint called over to her.

Natasha smirked and couldn't help but notice Barbara look slightly jealous at his reference to a time where she wasn't there. The Russian assassin felt triumphant at this and turned her focus to other Skrulls, not hearing the next conversation that went on behind her.

"Bobbi?" asked Clint.

"Yeah?" she answered.

"If we die here, I just want to say that you look really beautiful and I missed you."

"Then I'd like to say that I missed you too and that I have a confession to make; I collect glass unicorns."

She turned to Clint who she was now standing next to and smiled at him. He smiled back and leaned forward.

And then he kissed her.

"Just in case we die," he said once he pulled back. Still looking at her, he shot an arrow and hit a Skrull in the head.

* * *

Aboard the helicarrier, Jane was working in the labs as best as she could to track down where the Skrulls were coming from. Darcy stood by her and was looking very frightened, twisting a lock of her hair around her finger nervously. There were sudden bangs on the helicarrier and Darcy squealed in fear.

"I'm sure it's nothing," said Jane, ignoring the fact Darcy had now ducked down behind a counter, her hands tightly gripping her taser.

Suddenly the door blew open and Jane screamed in surprise. A Skrull stood there and, she had to admit, it was pretty repulsive up close.

"Where are the gems?" it asked in a nasally voice.

"I don't know," she lied easily.

Little did Jane know, Darcy was carefully inching around the counter and was getting behind the Skrull.

"Where are the gems!" it yelled, raising the gun it held and pointing it at Jane.

The Skrull suddenly started shaking as something shot him and he fell to the ground. Jane stared wide eyed and mouth agape at Darcy who had her taser up and was pointing to where the Skrull had been standing, eyes closed.

"Did I get him?" she asked.

"Yeah," answered Jane, letting out a breath of relief. "You got him."

* * *

It didn't take long for Bruce to Hulk out. His nice shirt ripped as he turned mean and green.

"SMASH!" he yelled as he jumped out of the quinjet and onto the ground. However, he caused the ground to start rumbling. Daisy noticed this from where she was standing and used all the concentration she could muster and controlled the vibrations. She could sense where a large group of Skrulls were positioned and sent the vibrations there. Although it was out of sight, that didn't change the fact that the Skrulls went flying into the air, Clint shooting them with arrows.

Hulk continued through the crowds of Skrulls, their weapons being no match for him.

"My," said Eros in his spot near the Asgardians, "he is slightly scary like that."

"You have no idea," muttered Loki, actually feeling frightened by the sight of the Hulk, his body aching at the remembrance of getting thrown around like a rag doll.

"He cannot be _that _bad. He is even coming this way! I think he-"

Eros was cut off as the Hulk ran right into him. The Asgardians laughed as they watched Eros fly into several different Skrulls and finally land on the hard ground with a groan of pain.

"You have to admit," said Phil with a smile as he watched from the quinjet he was on, "that guy deserved it."

* * *

Stephen held onto the bag which held all of the gems tightly. He was being careful where he went, making sure to stun each Skrull he came upon. He spent his time trying to hide as best as he could. His only job was to keep the gems safe and nearby so that once they separated Thanos and the Gauntlet, they could quickly put them gems in and kill Thanos.

However, while lurking around the Lincoln Memorial, an explosion sent him flying and, unfortunately separated Stephen from the bag, making it completely visible to everyone who looked at it. He crawled to his feet as fast as possible, ignoring the stone head of Abraham Lincoln resting beside him, but there was nothing he could do. He stared at the purple monster before him who was holding the bag in his fist, a smile in his face.

"I thank you," said Thanos. "You have made this much easier for me."

And before Stephen could do anything, Thanos disappeared.

* * *

"Tony! They're on your six!"

"Rhodey, I don't have a six. That's a number."

Rhodey sighed. "That means they're behind you."

"Got it."

Tony blasted the Skrulls flying behind him with the bottoms of the feet of his suit.

"Nice one," said Rhodey with a smile.

Tony smiled, too, as he flew over Washington D. C. From what he could see, Rhodey was taking out Skrull after Skrull.

"Y'know, you should have a cool name too," said Tony suddenly.

"What, like Iron Man?"

"Yeah. So what should it be?"

Rhodey thought for a moment. "How about War Machine?"

"I dunno, sounds kinda pansy."

"How the _hell_ does War Machine sound pansy?"

"I just expected something that says 'I'm a badass.'"

"You're the one who suggested I have a name."

"Fine, go with War Machine. It is a mouthful though."

Rhodey smiled as he shot a rocket from his arm at a group of Skrulls that were about to attack Tony, effectively killing them all.

"Maybe it'll grow on you."

* * *

"How are we supposed to get underneath this?" asked Gwen as she stared at the base of the Monument.

"I could make vibrations in the ground and cause it to fall over," suggested Daisy.

"No," argued Steve. "That'd be really bad."

"Then what are we supposed to do?"

"Leave this to me," said Hank, pushing everyone next to the Washington Monument aside.

"You're not gonna fit underneath that," stated Gwen, her eyebrows raised.

"Watch me." Hank turned back to look at them all. "No seriously, watch me. It'll be cool."

He messed with a button on his helmet.

Then he began to shrink. He shrunk in size before he became the size of an ant.

_Oh._

Now the whole ant farm thing made sense.

She could barely see Hank as he scurried through a crack at the bottom of the Monument and then he was gone.

"What does he think he's gonna do?" asked Daisy with a scoff. "He can't carry the gem out."

"Unless he shrinks it," suggested Gwen.

"He'll have to put the helmet on the gem, then," said Luke.

"This is just too weird," said Daisy, shaking her head.

Sure enough, Luke seemed to have been right. They could see Hank on the ground and out of nowhere he began to grow in size until he was back to his normal height. In his hand was the gem. Using his helmet, he managed to make the gem grow in size as well, until it was the same as all of the other gems.

There was a sudden explosion and Gwen was thrown back along with everyone else. It seemed Steve had tried to throw himself over her, so they found themselves laying awkwardly next to each other. She managed to sit up enough to see a purple man, who she assumed was Thanos, lower his arm. He was holding the bag in which Stephen had kept the other gems. That was definitely not good.

Thanos picked up the gem they had just retrieved and smiled at it.

"I must say, I doubted you all," he said. "I thought you would be smarter."

And with that Thanos placed each gem in their rightful place before anyone could reach him. The Gauntlet glowed as it recognized the power of the gems and the smile on Thanos's face got even bigger if possible.

The Gauntlet was complete.

And Thanos was in full control.


	28. Chapter Twenty Eight

**LET'S GET TO DAH CHAPTAH!**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Hahaha I bet Stephen would fight you on that. And YES Gwen and Becky would love each other omg. I just love thinking about it.**

**torixx3: OH SHNAP IS RIGHT**

**TeamAmWolves: Ah, okay. I was like...what? Haha. I want to shank him too. I don't know what's wrong with him. **

**Arrows the Wolf: Haha thanks. Hulk is so great.**

**Lena Sauran: Sorry! Haha, I am making a series. There's six installments in all.**

**WillowDamon17: Thanks! He is a clumsy fool!**

**Itsgoose2u: He does need to hurry up. Hopefully he can help save the day in this chapter.**

**Jimmy 144: Thanks! I couldn't help myself with her taser.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: I think most of us are angry with Clint haha. I'm glad you found those things funny haha. You'll find out if you're right with that question in like two chapters. We're gettin' there!**

**AngelVamp6688: Don't worry, I have trouble killing these guys off! My heart breaks too. I love Tasha.**

**StarViky: Thank you! I knew I had to fit the taser in there haha.**

**Jayc Black: Don't worry! Don't cry! It'll be alright dear reader!**

**dragonrain618: Yay! Someone who doesn't want Clint to die! Weee!**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

Gwen only managed to look up as Thanos finished the Gauntlet. He smiled down at her, pointing the Gauntlet at her.

"Say goodbye to your planet, mortal," he said.

He shot a blast from the Gauntlet before Gwen could react to his sentence. Just before the light hit her, something got in the way. She looked up to see a man wearing leather, metal and green. He suddenly fell to the ground and disappeared.

Thanos laughed. "This is not a time for your tricks, Loki!"

Gwen saw the real Loki appear out of nowhere. He stood in front of her, almost protectively.

"Then what is it a time for?" he asked the purple Titan.

"It is time for you to die, Odinson."

But before he could fire the Gauntlet which was now aimed at Loki, a blast of light hit Thanos and he flew away from them.

"My brother is _such_ a homicidal maniac!"

Gwen turned to see Eros, examining his hands. He looked very beat up and bruised. Gwen assumed he had a run in with the Hulk. And it seemed that the womanizer had actually saved them. Wasn't that a surprise.

Her attention changed when she saw Loki extending a hand out to her. She took it as he helped her up.

"Thanks," she said.

"You are welcome."

They didn't have time for anything else as the Skrulls approached. Gwen turned around to find Steve now standing, looking unsure about the whole "Loki-just-saved-Gwen" thing, but he at least wasn't trying to kill the god. They nodded at each other in understanding, Steve turning to fight and Gwen doing the same.

"Hey Gwenie!" came Tony's voice.

"What is it Tony?" she asked as she took out her gun and began firing.

"I added something to your uniform."

"D'you mind telling me what?"

"Batteries."

Gwen smiled as she looked down at her belt. Indeed there were batteries and she felt very stupid for not even knowing they were there.

"You're a genius," she muttered.

"Tell me something I don't know."

Gwen focused as best as she could and felt the energy from the batteries fall under her control. She let it almost become one with her as it became visible and climbed up her arms. She formed it into a sphere, just like what she had shown Daisy when they arrived. However, Gwen had never done anything more with the sphere before and knew that what she was about to try was risky. But she did it anyway.

The blonde turned towards a group of approaching Skrulls, aimed the sphere at them and commanded it to fly at them. Just as the sphere was about the hit them, she let it explode.

The energy hit them and they all went flying back. Gwen focused the energy just on the Skrulls so that it didn't go anywhere else and harm another person. She noticed, however, that she had also destroyed the grass in the process.

"You have to admit," said Steve beside her, "that was actually pretty awesome."

Gwen laughed as she began to gather the energy she had shot forward and bring it back to her. "Thanks."

* * *

Thanos was seething. He was _burning_ with anger. This wasn't how the plan was supposed to go. He was supposed to be crushing the pathetic mortals. But instead, he was seeing his army being destroyed. He could've sworn he even saw some of them run back through the portal.

It was time Thanos took the battle into his own hands.

The Titan went on a bit of a rampage. He didn't care what he shot with the Gauntlet. One shot hit the Washington Monument at its middle and the top half started to sway. Half of the obelisk fell and Thanos saw the Avengers around that area dive away and to safety.

Scowling, he shot some more, destroying even some of the Skrulls. They were useless anyway. All they were doing was having fun shooting the buildings and causing chaos. Granted Thanos like doing that kind of thing too, but he wanted the Avengers out of the way. But one of them, Luke Cage or something, managed to run forward and catch it before it did damge. It was _them_ who were ruining his plan. It was _them_ who were saving their puny planet from his rule.

Thanos thought about what the Other told him. "To challenge the humans is to court death." He then realized at this moment that the Other had not been referring to the Death that Thanos thought of. Instead, the death that had been spoken about was the real thing. Death as in to actually die.

But Thanos wasn't finished yet. If he was to die, he'd end it all with a bang.

* * *

The fight went on for a while. Gwen was finding herself getting tired, her head starting to throb. She was slowly losing focusing becoming unable to hit everything she wanted to.

Out of no where, the clouds seemed to open up as a ray of light shot down dangerously fast and hit the ground. It went away almost immediately leaving something else in its place.

Gwen saw an old man with a staff wearing a helmet and what seemed to be some sort of eyepatch. He was on a large, eight-legged horse.

"Father?" called Thor, a look of pure shock on his face. "You live?"

The man Gwen now assumed was Odin ignored Thor's shout and instead stared at Thanos.

"All-Father?" asked the purple maniac. He actually looked slightly frightened. "How is this possible?"

"The poison you put on the dagger you attempted to kill me with was not of Asgard. It has a different effect on us. Instead, it makes us show symptoms of being dead while we are unconscious for a period of time."

"Go, All-Father, before I end you myself!"

"Stop this foolishness, Thanos! You cannot win!"

"Watch me!

Before Thanos could do anything else, Odin shot him with a blast from his staff, sending Thanos flying.

And the Gauntlet went flying in a separate direction.

"Father!"

Gwen saw Thor running over to Odin who was now getting off of his horse. She saw Loki look at the old man with shock. Sif, Fandral, Volstagg and Hogun were all smiling widely at their King, okay, maybe not Hogun, but he was probably exploding on the inside.

"So _that's_ the King of Asgard?" asked Tony's voice. "He's...old."

"What did you expect?" asked Daisy. "He's like, hundreds of years old or something."

"Humans," said Odin, turning to all of the others who were now gathering together at the base of the destroyed Monument. Even the Hulk had wandered over, making Odin furrow his brow. "And green giant. You must go. I can send Thanos away."

"No, father," Loki spoke up. "I am the one who made a deal with Thanos. It is because of me that he is here. I will end him."

"Nonesense, I will not lose you a second time."

"And we will not lose you," said Thor. "We fight this together, father."

Odin paused for a moment.

"Where is Thanos, anyway?" asked Hank.

Everyone looked over at him and noticed he was growing so that he was back to his normal size. Gwen hadn't even noticed him shrink a second time.

"He must be invisible," said Stephen, coming to join them with a cut across the right side of his face.

"So he is hiding," laughed Eros. "That figures."

"Where are the Skrulls?" asked Natasha.

"They're running away," answered Rhodey's voice.

"Yeah," agreed Tony. "Once Santa Claus got here they took off for that portal on the White House."

"So Thanos is a coward," observed Fandral.

Out of nowhere, Sif screamed. She must have been thoroughly surprised as Gwen was sure that nothing could frighten the female warrior.

Everyone turned around immediately and saw that Thanos had taken hold of Sif. He was certainly bigger than her, but he now held her spear and had it pointed at her throat.

"One wrong move," said Thanos who seemed slightly out of breath, "and she dies."

Everyone still had their weapons pointed at Thanos, but no one was willing to let Sif get hurt. And so they lowered them.

"Good," continued Thanos with a smile. "Now give me the Gauntlet."

"We do not know where it is," stated Odin.

"You lie, All-Father. You must be hiding it."

"I do not lie. We know not of its location."

"GIVE ME THE GAUNTLET OR SHE DIES!"

"Let go of her, please."

Gwen recognized the voice and turned quickly to see Phil standing there, behind them all. And he had the Gauntlet on his arm.

The group parted so that he could walk forward, the Gauntlet aimed at Thanos. Gwen couldn't help but wonder when he had even gotten down on the ground. She wanted to yell at him, but was in complete shock of the situation. It was an action like this that had gotten him killed. Or, at least they had thought so.

"Coulson!" yelled Tony in their earpieces. "What the _hell_ are you doing?"

"I said let her go," demanded Phil.

"It was a stunt like this that got you killed!" added Steve. "Well, sort of..."

"Alright," said Thanos, still smiling. "I'm amused."

But instead of just simply letting Sif go, he threw her into what remained of the Washington Monument. Gwen saw Thor run to her to see if she was okay.

Phil suddenly shot a blast from the Gauntlet and Thanos flew backwards into the ground, digging up the ground where he slid.

"Coulson!" shouted Steve. "Put it down!"

"You puny mortals think yourself above Titans!" shouted Thanos as he got up, pushing chuncks of mud and earth off of him. "You are lower than dirt! You are-"

He was cut off by a blast from Phil and exploded into what almost looked like confetti and Gwen couldn't help but think of Voldemort's death in the last _Harry Potter_ movie. It littered the ground as though a New Years Eve party had just taken place.

It was completely silent as Gwen slowly stood up, staring at the spot where Thanos had stood. She then looked back at Phil who was smiling in complete delight, the Gauntlet steaming on his arm as he lowered it.

People started moving around her, getting up, pushing rubble out of the way, getting to medics. She could see Tony now flying around the Hulk like an annoying bee, the green rage monster swatting at him angrily. Daisy was sitting on the ground looking exhausted as she was approached by Luke who helped her up. Stephen was quick to Phil in order to get the Gauntlet off just in case it went off by accident. The Asgardians grouped together, even Loki, who looked almost..._happy_.

But Gwen went straight for Steve and threw her arms around him. She soon pulled back and kissed him.

"I told you everything would be okay," he teased her when they parted.

Gwen rolled her eyes and sighed. "Just shut up and kiss me."

And Steve did just that.

* * *

**Okay guys, there's two more chapters and then an epilogue. And now you know why I specifically had Loki realize at the end of "Powers" that the poison on the blade used to "kill" Odin was not of Asgard. I PULLED A J. K. ROWLING. WEEE.**


	29. Chapter Twenty Nine

**There's one more chapter and an epilogue to go after this! WEEE!**

**Arrows the Wolf: I didn't know Clark Gregg was in that movie! ASDFGHJK; **

**TeamAmWolves: Aww, I'm sorry you feel that way. It just seemed right to me.**

**MysticRyter: Oh, I'll go change that spelling error quickly. Thanks for pointing it out! And yes, EPIC COULSON.**

**WillowDamon17:Thank you! I couldn't help myself with that line haha.**

**Lena Sauran: No, she isn't a Skrull impersonator haha. She's human. Don't worry, you're actually not the only one.**

**Itsgoose2u: I can't stand it either! I just loved when he stood up to Loki in the movie.**

**AngelVamp6688: Loki will definitely make it up to her in the next installment (hint hint). I just love Phil omg.**

**DragonQuill6913: YAY! Nothing can defeat the Avengers!**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha TEAM COULSON! I love it. Now I can't think of Thanos dying without that noise haha. I hope you like these chapters then!**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Praise Phil. He is our master now omg. Yes, you'll find out who the rapist is eventually hahaha. Omg we should write a one-shot of them together. SO PERFECT.**

**StarViky: Yes there will be! I'm writing it now!**

**snowyclara: I wondered where you went! I imagined obsessive screaming when I read your review hahaha. I know, Clint really needs to figure this stuff out. I didn't want Natasha to die, so I wanted her to look the other way. **

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

The top of the helicarrier was full of people. Fury was off to the side, speaking with Odin about Asgard and Earth fighting together against future threats, but Gwen couldn't hear them. She was having fun watching the Asgardians say farewell to everyone. Odin was going to transport them back to their own realm where they were to be honored for their deeds. Gwen had been amused by the look of shock on Loki's face when he realized that he was the be honored alongside the others.

It was lucky that no one had been killed during the battle. Everyone suffered from scratches, bruises and some broken bones here and there, but it wasn't all that bad. Steve healed fast from him being a super soldier, so no one had to worry about him. Gwen and Daisy slept a lot to regain their own energy from using their powers. Loki had been allowed to use his magic to heal everyone, though he lied when it came time to help Eros and said that his own energy was drained from the extensive use of magic, leaving Eros to heal himself and it was very obvious healing didn't come naturally.

Gwen couldn't help but notice Fandral taking a rather long goodbye with Darcy and saw Eros trying to hit on Daisy who was trying to reject him in the nicest way possible. Eros was to travel with the Asgardians and then use the tesseract to transport himself home and give the news of Thanos's defeat. He did not seem at all saddened by his brother's death, but Gwen couldn't blame him.

Gwen watched as Loki cautiously approached her.

"Goodbye, Gwendolyn Powers," he said.

"Bye, Loki. Thanks again for saving my life."

"It was no problem." They both saw Fandral lift Darcy's hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles while she giggled. "I would give you a proper goodbye, but I believe the soldier is watching and I would really like to not die before I reach Asgard."

"Well, then here." Gwen put out her hand. He stared at it blankly. "Just shake it."

Loki grasped her had and shook it a little harder than she expected, but she didn't show any surprise.

"I hope to see you again," he said before nodding at Gwen and turning back to the Asgardians.

A hand linked with hers and Gwen turned to see Steve watching Loki, making sure he didn't turn back.

"For crying out loud, Steve," she said with a sigh. "Loki saved my life."

"I know," he answered. He continued watching and Gwen had a sudden realization.

"Oh my God...you think he likes me."

Steve looked down at her and furrowed his brow. "What?"

Gwen smiled, prepared to tease him. "Steve Rogers, you are jealous because Loki saved my life!"

"I am _not_ jealous."

"You're a terrible liar."

"Okay, so maybe I'm a bit concerned..."

"Look at me." Gwen let go of his hand as she used both of hers to turn his face towards hers and keep it there. "There is no one that I want in this world other than you. Do you understand me?"

"Loki's from a different world."

"For the love of - okay, there is no one I want in this entire universe or whatever else is out there other than you. Got it?"

Steve smiled and kissed her. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

* * *

"Jane!"

The brunette turned from her conversation with Erik to the source of the booming voice and smiled when Thor approached her. She could hear Erik mutter something like "I'll give you guys some privacy" and then walk away.

"I promise that I will return," said Thor.

"I know," answered Jane. "You kept that promise last time."

Thor smiled. "With the powers of the Gauntlet and the tesseract, I am sure we will be able to rebuild the Bifrost. I will come and finally show you the bridge."

"That sounds great."

Thor took her hand and brought it to his lips. He then gently kissed her knuckles. Not satisfied with this, Jane shot forward and kissed him, just as she had before he left the first time.

"Until then," he said nodding.

"I'll miss you," she told him.

"And I you. I love you, Jane Foster."

Her heart racing, Jane giggled. "I love you, too, Thor Odinson."

* * *

"The events in Washington D. C. are being called catastrophic and rival that to an alien invasion that took place earlier this year. There were as many as fifty civillian casualties. The Washington Monument will continue its closure as it is rebuilt. This event has raised concern throughout both political parties. Some say the cause of the attack was by the group called the "Avengers" while witnesses claim it was this same group that actually stopped the invasion and saved the world, just as they had in New York City."

"Yeah, that's right," said Tony as the anchorman finished and footage of witnesses' accounts were being shown. "We _did_ save the world."

Gwen chuckled from her spot on one of the common area's couches next to Steve. Her legs were folded underneath her as she let all of her weight rest on the soldier whose arm was around her.

Tony was sitting on the floor, leaning against Pepper's legs who was sitting on a different couch than Gwen. Bruce sat next to Tony on the floor. Luke was in a single chair, leaning forward and watching the the news footage intently while Daisy was seated next to Gwen. Hank was cross-legged in the middle of the floor, wearing his helmet and whispering to his ant farm. This no longer looked weird to anyone.

Natasha laid on the floor on her stomach, looking deep in thought while Clint and Barbara were off somewhere else in Atlantis. Erik, Stephen, Jane and Darcy were all cleaning up the labs while Rhodey was off and flying in his suit for fun.

Fury and Phil were both on the helicarrier as they prepared for everything that had been shipped to Atlantis to be shipped back to its original place. Only Stephen's things were remaining as he wished to stay in Atlantis and use the technology there to create some sort of portal so that he could use both his home and the city as places to work. Jane and Darcy were planning on moving from New Mexico to New York, knowing that they were so far away.

The group of them were to go back to New York the next day where everyone would part. Daisy had already began considering moving into Avengers Tower, seeing as she really didn't want to go back to San Francisco. Gwen was happy about this, not wanting to lose her new friend.

Pepper had to calm Tony down when he came up with the idea of another party. He seemed to think that they needed one now more than ever. But instead he now insisted that they all have shawarma as some sort of tradition for saving the world.

As Gwen looked around her, she couldn't help but smile. It was weird, but everyone in this room was like a family. One big messed up family, but still a family nonetheless. And she smiled.

As messed up as they all were, she was happy. And that was all she needed.

* * *

A hole ripped through the air of Asgard and disappeared, leaving several people in its place. They all seemed to have appeared in the throne room where Friggs got up quickly and ran to them all.

"Thank Valhalla," she muttered as she wrapped her arms around her youngest son first. He was surprised, but immediately returned the gesture.

"Mother!" exclaimed Thor. "Did you know all this time that father is alive."

She smiled and shook her head. "No, it was quite a shock." She looked at the unfamiliar face. "Who is this?"

"I am Eros of Titan," stated Eros. "It is a pleasure to meet you m'lady."

It wasn't long before all of Asgard was in the grand hall of the palace. All those involved in the battle were placed on the stairs with the exception of Eros who used the tesseract to go back to Titan, but not without a last attempt at flirting with Sif who, once again, flipped him on his back.

"Today we honor our brave warriors for their deeds on Midgard," said Odin after he quieted everyone down. He turned to Sif. "To Lady Sif!"

"To Lady Sif!" the realm repeated.

Odin continued on. "To Fandral!"

"To Fandral!"

"To Volstagg!"

"To Volstagg!"

"To Hogun!"

"To Hogun!"

Odin now came upon his two sons. Thor was smiling, his helmet on his head and his formal armor on. Loki was the same in his trademark color of green contrasting with Thor's red.

"To my eldest, Thor!"

"To Thor!"

"And to my youngest, Loki!"

"To Loki!"

And as they all applauded, Loki felt something he had never felt before.

Equal.


	30. Chapter Thirty

**So...I hope you all like this chapter because I actually enjoyed it myself. **

**TeamAmWolves: Thanks! I'm glad you liked the ending. I honestly love jealous Steve. I think he's cute.**

**Arrows the Wolf: I'll have to rent it on iTunes or something because my mom never wanted to see in theaters. This is so exciting 'cause my school mascot is a penguin :D**

**DragonQuill6913: Haha, that's good to hear! Haha, I like that idea of the government suing Tony. He'd be so angry haha.**

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: Haha we can date him in our own minds. Imaginations are great. Omg I'm getting all excited about this one-shot.**

**dragonrain618: Haha I love Steve getting jealous too! And Loki of all people. **

**WillowDamon17: That's how I see Steve too! I can't see him get "possessive" but I definitely see him getting jealous.**

**Jayc Black: I hope you continue to love it!**

**Itsgoose2u: Haha, I had a feeling if he kissed her hand Steve would throw him off the helicarrier. It makes me think of when Gwen first met Thor and Steve got jealous of him kissing her hand.**

**StarViky: Thank you! I hope it turns out awesome!**

**morbidly-funny: Thank you very much!**

**Guest: That was the Germany scene, right? It's so cool how moviemakers can trick us.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: OMG he does need an intervention. I bet you'll explode of cuteness overload one of these days. That is now my evil plan. And thank you!**

**transformationsgirl: Perhaps...*whistles while looking down at chapter***

**AngelVamp6688: I hope you like this chapter then! **

* * *

**Chapter Thirty**

The sun was beginning its descent to set as Gwen walked into the hotel bedroom. She found Steve attempting to straighten out his shirt, but was failing miserably.

"You buttoned it wrong," observed Gwen with a smile. He looked up as she approached. She unbuttoned the shirt so that she could button it up for him the right way. She couldn't help but notice his cheeks turn red as he fingers grazed his chest.

"Thanks," he said once she was was done.

Gwen left her hands on his chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "You're welcome. I want to make sure you look good for you date."

"It's not a date!" exclaimed Steve, his face turning red again. "I only go on dates with you!"

Gwen laughed. "I was teasing you, Steve."

She leaned up and kissed him as if to prove her point. She had been teasing him for the past two weeks after the defeat of Thanos. And Gwen was finding it to be far too easy.

"Are you sure about this?" asked Steve.

"For the millionth time, yes I am," she answered. "I think this would be good for you."

"It's just that it'll be weird seeing her old."

Gwen fixed his collar. "Don't you think it'll be weird for her to see you young?"

Steve laughed. "I doubt it."

Gwen backed up after giving him another kiss and then went back into the hotel sitting area. While Steve was with Peggy Carter, she was going to be staying in the hotel and working on some research that was asked of her by Clint and Barbara. The two of them, along with Rhodey and Erik, had been relocated to Los Angeles where the West Coast Avengers Tower was being built.

"I think I should leave now," said Steve as he came out of the bedroom. He was dressed as usual as Gwen didn't force him to change. She actually sort of liked the fact she was dating a man who dressed like he was still in the 1940s.

She got up off the couch and they wrapped their arms around each other.

"It'll be fine," she whispered in his ear. "There's no need to be nervous."

Steve nodded before he pulled back and kissed her deeply. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she answered automatically.

They finally let go of each other and Steve left the hotel room to visit his first love.

* * *

Steve rang the doorbell at the address Gwen had given him. He wished she had come along, but she insisted that it wasn't her place to join. He knew it was true, but he slightly wanted to show Peggy who he was now with for he was proud to call Gwen his girlfriend.

The door opened to reveal an old woman. Her gray hair fell down to her shoulders, but her brown eyes were still big and bright.

"Captain," she said, a smile playing on her lips.

"Agent Carter," he answered, his heart racing.

"Come in, Steve."

Peggy stepped aside and Steve entered her home. There was a staircase to the left and a hallway in front of them.

"Grandma!" shouted the voice of a young girl. "David took my doll again!"

"Just one moment," said Peggy as she went down the hall. Steve noticed how frail she looked, but it didn't surprise him. She came back a moment later with a smile on her face.

"Don't just stand there, Captain," she laughed. "Come with me."

He followed her down the hall and to the right which was a living room. On the floor sat two children surrounded by toys. One was a little girl, no more than seven. Her brown hair was in pigtails and she held a doll in her hands. The other was a boy who looked about nine or ten. Steve couldn't help but notice the toy shield he was holding.

"Margaret, David, I'd like you to meet a friend of mine," said Peggy. "This is Steve."

"Do you like superheroes?" asked David.

"Uh, well, I guess," said Steve, unsure of how to respond.

"Margaret says that they're stupid, but they're not."

"That's because you took my doll!" exclaimed Margaret.

"My favorite superhero is Captain America," said David, now getting up on his feet. "He's super strong and really cool."

Steve found it strange to be hearing this from a child.

"He is very cool, isn't he?" agreed Peggy. "Now if you excuse me, children, I must discuss something with Steve."

She looked over at him and beckoned for him to follow her. He did, unsure of where they were going. She led him into the basement of the house. It was large and finished with blue walls and a gray carpet. There was a door to the left at the bottom of the steps and Peggy went through it, leading Steve in there. When he stepped in, he couldn't believe it.

Steve felt as though he had stepped back into his own time. There was a record player and black and white photos that covered bulletin boards on the walls. Newspaper clippings were held in place by tacks and everything just felt so..._right_.

"I knew I'd find you one day," said Peggy as Steve tried to remember where he was, "so I decided I'd better have a place were you could feel at home."

"This is...wow."

"Now, I do believe you owe me a dance."

Steve blushed as she turned on a record and approached him. He put a hand on her waist as she put a hand on his shoulder and they swayed. Peggy was certainly a better dancer than Gwen.

"So tell me," said Peggy, "what's she like?"

Steve furrowed his brow. "Who?"

Peggy chuckled. "The girl. I've seen the news footage, Steve. Everyone is wondering who Captain America's girlfriend is."

"Oh," answered Steve who was now blushing. "Her name's Gwen Powers."

"And what's she like?"

"She's...well she's perfect."

"How so?"

"She loves me for Steve, not Captain America. She isn't afraid to hide how she's feeling and is overall a very kind person."

"It sounds like someone that was meant for you."

"Yeah, I think she is."

Steve suddenly felt awkward about this conversation seeing as he still loved Peggy. It was, of course, in a different way than he loved Gwen. Gwen was his light, his reason for living. Peggy wasn't. But Steve couldn't help but not see an old lady standing in front of him, but the Peggy he had seen before he was frozen. And he smiled.

"When are you going to ask her to marry you?"

Steve was slightly taken aback by this question. He certainly hadn't been expecting that.

"Well, I talked to Stark about it..."

"Tony Stark?"

"Yeah, he's sort of like a father or a brother to Gwen. I asked him for permission to ask her. He told me if I didn't do it soon, he'd throw me off Avengers Tower."

"And you haven't asked yet?"

"Well...I'm sort of-"

"Afraid she'll say no?"

Steve nodded sheepishly.

"I'm sure she'll say yes. Besides, you don't want to lose another girl, do you?"

He laughed as she smiled and they continued dancing.

* * *

Gwen's research was interrupted by Steve bursting through the door looking exciting.

"Let's go for a walk," he said, taking her hand.

"What?" asked Gwen.

Steve pulled her off the couch and got her jacket. He helped put it on her as she was still very much confused.

"Why are we going for a walk?" she asked.

Steve opened the door and Gwen went through it. He closed it behind them, hearing it lock.

"Because it'll be nice."

He offered her a smile as he took her hand.

Gwen's brow was still furrowed as they entered the elevator. Steve suddenly looked very nervous as they exited, still holding hands. They took the backdoor of the hotel that led to the boardwalk of Virginia Beach. There was only a light breeze, but it was still the end of October, so it certainly wasn't the warmest, but they didn't mind.

Gwen smiled as they walked down the boardwalk. It seemed there was only a few other people out and about which Gwen liked.

"This is nice," she said as Steve seemed very silent now. She heard him clear his throat and he stopped walking.

"When I talked to Peggy today, I realized something," he said. Gwen raised her eyebrows at him curiously.

"Would you mind sharing?"

And that's when Steve lowered himself down onto one knee. Gwen's lips stretched into a smile and her heart started racing. She managed to control the giggles that were threatening to escape her mouth.

"I love you," said Steve. "And I want to spend the rest of my life with you. So-"

He reached into his pocket and took out a small black box and opened it in front of Gwen.

"Gwendolyn Sharon Powers, will you marry me?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed, louder than she anticipated.

Steve smiled in relief as he took out the ring, which was a diamond sitting on a gold band, and slid it on her finger. He then stood up just as Gwen crushed her lips to his.

"I love you," she said happily after they broke apart.

"I love you, too."

And in that moment, two out of place people found their place in the world.

And that was with each other.

* * *

**I will try and post the epilogue later today. I just can't wait to post it and get on with the next installment.**

**And also virtual M&Ms to all who can give me a reason that Gwen's middle name is Sharon. *hint* taken from a comic book character *hint***


	31. Epilogue

**To those who say that Gwen's middle name is Sharon because of Sharon Carter, then virtual M&Ms for you!**

**Just like the epilogue for "Powers," this is like the after the credits scene and therefore short and ends with a major cliffhanger that foreshadows the next installment. Ta-da. And please forgive my terrible attempt to write a German accent.**

**torixx3: I love Virginia Beach too! I took a vacation there once and it was beautiful.**

**Arrows the Wolf: Haha I didn't know there was such a thing as a thuderbird. The other school I go to (I take online classes at one school and take orchestra at another) has a viking as their mascot. It's pretty lame.**

**Ms. Smooth Criminal: Haha I am slowly taking over the world with cuteness. I bet Tony would be like that too. Actually, I know haha. And yes, you get virtual M&Ms :D**

**TeamAmWolves: Virtual M&Ms to you! I have feels too for those. I wish they would've actually done a scene like that in the Avengers. I guess there's always CA 2. **

**Justasmalltowngirl2713: HAHA omg we keep killing ourselves a lot. Forget yolo. We do what we want.**

**pocahunta: Virtual M&Ms for you! I have no imagination for middle names so I was like, just go with Sharon haha. Thank you! And no, the wedding will be the first chapter of the next installment actually.**

* * *

**Epilogue**

Deep in a Florida marsh, a swamp began to open. The waters fell into a hole that was being created as a small aircraft traveled through it. Leaves blew all around as it traveled through and once it was out of sight, the swamp closed and everything became silent again.

Underneath the marsh, however, was a different story. The aircraft landed in a steel room. It stopped its noise from the engine inside it and a back door opened. A man stepped out once the ramp hit the ground. He was bald with peach colored skin and a piece of glass sat in front of his right eye. There were scars on his face and a smile on his lips. The man wore a black suit and a skinny black tie.

Several guards came up to him as he continued walking, all of them staying silent as they followed. He led them into another room which was large and spacious despite the large amount of people in it. The man went to the front of them all, his hands in his pockets. Next to him was an unknown object that sat under a light brown tarp.

"Gentlemen," he began. "HYDRA vas a failure. Zee Red Skull failed to vin zee var. He vas stopped by, as you all know, by Captain America. Howefer, ve are not HYDRA. Ve are better. Ve are _AIM_. Und I am proud to present AIM's finest creation since zee Super-Adaptoid. Zay hello to the Mental Organism Designed Only for Computers."

The man yanked the tarp off of the unknown object to reveal what looked to be a man. His eyes were closed and his face was as white as snow. He sat in some sort of machine in which his arms and legs came out. His hair was brown and a band went around his forehead.

The German man smiled. "Othervise known as MODOC."

Everyone in the room began to clap in amazement.

"Our goal is to end SHIELD's reign in zee vorld. And our priority is to keel Captain America."

There was appreciative applause again.

"Mr. von Stucker?" asked another man that approached the original one. "The test subjects are awake."

"Gud. Start zee process."

After the other man left, Baron von Strucker pressed a button on a control panel behind the new creation.

And in that moment, MODOK became alive.

* * *

**And that's it. I just want to add that there are rumors that MODOK will be the villian in Captain America 2. I honestly thought that it'd be the Winter Soldier but okay. I have a feeling where they'll go with the plot if this is the case.**

**Okay, so first of all, thanks to all who have reviewed, alerted, and favorited. It honestly means so much to me. I love you all.**

**Second, the next installment of Gwen's story will be called "Alliances." There will be a wedding, continuation of a love triangle and a high schooler who can climb walls (hint hint). I will post an AN when the first chapter is posted.**

**And third, I'll see you there!**

**-AccioVoldemortsNose**


	32. Alliances

**I would just like to say the first chapter of "Alliances" is up!**


End file.
